Starcrossed
by Burnout'83
Summary: Two alternative universes Cameron is presented with a difficult set of decisions. In her timeline John Connor is brutal bitter man with a messiah complex. When faced with the sensitive, alternative eighteen year old version of John Connor, who has no idea of who he is or his future,Cameron's sense of loyalties are conflicted and she begins to question her priorities.
1. Chapter 1

John regained consciousness. He was naked, lying on the floor inside a windowless room. The concrete floor was hard and cold. A T-600 terminator without sheathing was standing over him. Of course he didn't have a clue what a T-600 was,so apart from the freakish death's head grin and the demonic red eyes, it gave John Reese the initial impression maybe he was having a conversation with an intelligent, but deranged piece of military hardware . The confused machine kept insisting his surname was Connor. Of course John wasn't aware this is a terminator's 'friendly' warm-up routine before they get down to ripping 'data' out of their victims. Anyway, John thought, he'd probably dozed off playing online chess back in his bedroom and he was having an extremely lucid nightmare, so he refused to take the questions the machine was asking him and the situation too seriously .

John was trying to figure out the logic underlying the T-600's questioning, and he was about to ask if this 'Skynet' was maybe some new satellite cell network, when the steel door and reinforced concrete wall at the far end of the bunker system exploded into shrapnel and the T600's human slave-workers began screaming as they were mown down in the ensuing fire-fight.

Within seconds the invading force battled their way to the area where John was being held. A hail of gunfire and explosions swung the light bulbs and rocked the dust out of the concrete ceiling. Being its mission priority, and it being a rather unintuitive model, the 600 series terminator stood impassively beside John guarding him as its primary target and prisoner. At the sound of the advancing battle John got on his feet and began backing towards the wall.

All fell silent for a few seconds and then there was a high pitched whine. A dark haired girl appeared in the doorway. She shouted ," get down " with such force John threw himself against the wall a fraction of a second before she blasted the T-600 apart with plasma canon . She advanced towards John striding over a solidified pool of coltan slag and the more identifiable parts of the machine's sparking and smouldering remains. She was about three paces away from John when she abruptly stopped and tilted her head. For a few beats John and the girl stared at each other in frozen silence. Then with a flick of her pony tail she turned and whistled over her shoulder. Four more soldiers cautiously peered around the frame of door.

One particularly fierce looking soldier with a deeply scarred cheek and forehead glared at John marched over to him booting bits of scrap metal out of his path. When he was so close John could feel the soldier's breath on his face he pressed the muzzle of a 9mm Browning into the centre of John's forehead and slipped off the safety. He fixed John with a pair of ultra hard green eyes and growled, "Son, you'd better not be a god-damn me-clone, so, what did your mom give you for your tenth birthday huh?" Scarface demanded, twisting the muzzle on John's forehead.

John's eyes darted around his room in panic. "Birthday?" He spluttered out the first image that came into his head. "Mutant Turtles bedcover… wait, no that was when I was seven, no eight... I don't remember", he yelled.

'Think carefully, this is important,"Scarface barked, pressing the gun against John Reese's forehead even harder so it forced his head to crane back against his neck. John gulped and started trembling. The rest of the squad were training their weapons on him too. John's legs started shaking uncontrollably and he felt a pressure being relieved in his bladder. The other soldiers coughed and snorted to cover their amusement Scarface glanced down at his boots but by the time he looked back up the rest of his squad had stopped smirking. At that point the brown haired girl stepped in between John Reese and Scarface and said in an almost exasperatedly patient voice "Guys, this isn't helping, let's try another approach shall we?" The girl gently motioned with her hand for Scarface to lower his weapon, which grudgingly he did.

"Hi, I'm Cameron Phillips", Cameron beamed a friendly smile and thrust out her hand. When Cameron realised John wasn't going to return her greeting, she reached up and touched John's shoulder and tilted her head. Her expression froze for a few seconds as if she was very deep in serious thought.

"Definitely not a clone, no implants or tracking devices 100% organic match. He's AU"She announced

"What the hell Alternative Universe did the Metal pull him out of then?" Scarface demanded.

"I don't know yet," replied Cameron in a calming neutral voice. She sounded like a teacher talking to a group of fractious students trying not to make them feel like a bunch of dumb asses "I think we will get further if I talk to him and maybe you and Delta Squad go and check out Skynet's latest invention, you know make sure the bubble-heads don't fry anyone before I get there?" The girl raised her eyebrows to emphasise her point.

Scarface snorted and slammed his weapon back into its holster and signalled his men to stand their weapons down. " Hitchens," he ordered" go strip a Grey . Get a jacket , cover the kid up with it. "The rest of you, with me." Hitchens snapped -to and ran out of the room in search of clothing. Scarface turned to Cameron, "Phillips, if that kid gives you any grief you just collar okay, I'll be outside."

"I will 'holler'," Cameron replied earnestly "You better take this," she added, un-strapping the very big plasma cannon slung around her shoulder. Scarface made an 'ugh' sound as he struggled with its weight. "Huh thanks Cam,"he muttered.

The squad stomped out of the room following Scarface and John Reese breathed out a huge sigh of relief. He studied the girl's features desperately trying to find something to trust. On the face of it she appeared the least psychotic of anyone or anything he'd met in this deranged place so far. Trust her? Did he have the option? John eyes fixed on the burnt-out chassis of the T-600, "what the hell did I do, why does everyone want to kill me? What is that thing?"

Cameron held out the palms of her hands in front of John as if she was quieting down a startled horse "Come on, one question at a time. Please, don't be afraid, I'm not going to torture you or anything. I promise." One slightly odd mannerism John picked up immediately was the way this young girl had casually used the word 'torture', like she was highly fluent in 'torture'.

Hitchens re-entered the room and threw a combat jacket to Cameron which she snatched out of the air with a swish of her arm. She handed the jacket to John .It was bullet-riddled and splattered with the blood of the previous wearer. John Reese turned his back to her and pulled the jacket around his shoulders and slipped his arms through the sleeves. It draped over his body like a bloodied camouflage tent, but it was an order of magnitude better than being naked in a hostile place.

Hitchens took up a protective stance behind Cameron. He chewed on his lower lip and examined John carefully. "Mam, you sure you are okay with this guy? Like he's freaking us the hell out. Boss ain't happy with it either," Hitchens spat on the melted T-600 endoskeleton and when he turned his attention back to John his expression made it quite plain he'd happily slit John's throat at Cameron's request.

Cameron continued as if this was perfectly normal behaviour from her men. "I am fine Hitchens, honestly, thank you for your concern, and thank you for finding the jacket .I'm sure our guest appreciates it."

"Colonel." replied Hitchens respectfully," like The Boss says, if you need us you just hollar, we're only in the next room along. "

"It's okay, please Hitch, return to your squad." Cameron replied calmly.

Reluctantly Hitchens went off to rejoin the rest of Scarface's team. John Reese put his hands in the jacket pockets and shook his head in disbelief. There was no starting point make to sense of anything with so he blurted out his first thought."You're a Colonel?"

"Yeah" "totally sucks doesn't it? Cameron grinned,

John found himself trying to sound as bold and professionally connected and as adult he could..." Right, Colonel Phillips… I want a lawyer. My Mom's an English professor at UCLA and we know lawyers, it's my human right to have legal representation and people are going to know I am missing "

"And?" replied Cameron frowning in amusement.

"I want a lawyer, I want one now, and that's it." John repeated firmly.

"Hate to break it to you but we killed all the lawyers first," replied Cameron in deadpan terminator.

John took a step back from her in terror.

Cameron her hands out again, "okay, okay sorry, my very bad attempt at humour. That was a misquote: Henry VI, William Shakespeare." John's eyes were boggling. "You know Shakespeare: That English guy writer, Henry Sixth, Part 2 Act 4, scene 2, 71–78 - "first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers?" Cameron examined John for signs of cognizance then shook her head and sighed, "I like reading classics and researching cultural and historical data... Look, for technical reasons there aren't any lawyers around here any more, so there's no way I can get you a lawyer, but you got us, we're on your side". She frowned in the cutest way possible to emphasize her point.

"You're my side? So who was the guy with the gun at my head?"

"He was extremely stressed but next time he sees you he'll probably have calmed down enough to be reasonable."

John tried to read her expression for signs she was playing with him. She seemed sincere, concerned even.

" Soo..." Cameron daintily stepped around John in a 360 circle scanning him up and down from head to toe. "Do you want to tell me your name?" I'm guessing your first name is John?"

"John Reese."

"And how old are you?" she asked.

"Sixteen,"John replied.

"Where are you from John Reese? "

"LA" John answered.

She'd paced around him in a balletic full circle and stopped in the exact stance she'd stepped out from. Cameron's eyes searched his "Why doesn't anyone believe me?" he asked.

"Why should anyone believe you?" Cameron replied, resting her elbows on the back of a chair. She leaned forward bringing her hands gently together in front her - "It's okay, I believe you though," she said quietly.

"So what did I do? Why does everyone want to kill me, and what the hell's that thing" – John pointed at the terminator's fried-out chassis where melted onto the concrete.

"You didn't do anything. They won't try to capture you again, trust me."

"How do you know they won't?"

"We're going to strip their equipment, take what we need and blow this place apart when we have finished up here."

"So where is this?"

"I can't tell you John, if I explain where this place is, that kind of knowledge will get you killed, and we can't protect you any more than we are doing now."

Cameron's friendly manner switched to default; Boots were approaching. Scarface stuck his head back in the room. He strolled over to the skull of the terminator and stood with his boot on it as if it were a rock at the summit of a mountain he'd climbed and he was posing for a snapshot. He drew a cigar butt out of his pocket and sparked it up with a Zippo lighter. He took a deep breath exhaled and coughed, and like Hitchens , Scarface spat on the melted T-600 remains before turning his attention back to John "Do you know hat that thing is ?"Scarface asked with a less menacing tone than he'd used before.

"No sir ", John replied.

"You sure, no one's ever told you anything about machines like that?"

"No sir," John replied honestly.

"Un-fucking-believable, but I don't think you are lying. "

"See, John I told you he was calming down," Cameron grinned at John and wrinkled her nose to try to break the tension.

"Cameron shut up, I'm trying to be damn serious here," Scarface barked. "You live with your mom, right, her name's Sarah?"

John nodded.

"And she's never said anything about robots to you?"

"No sir", John replied frowning at the peculiarity of the question.

"You ever been to or lived in Mexico, or El Salvador, or Nicaragua or any of those places?"

"No sir, I've lived in LA all my life." John said.

"What does you mom do John?"

Cameron chimed in,"Sarah's an English teacher at UCLA "

Scarface took a couple of moments to make up his mind, and when he did he delivered his summary judgement:

"Okay John, I'm gonna offer you two options: Option1 , were going to pump you full of sodium pentothal and you're going to wake up back in your bedroom and all of this is going to seem like a very bad dream, one you never gonna discuss with anyone, or so help you God,... or there's Option 2

"Option 2?"

"Yeah that's where I order Cameron out of here, and for the sake of the rest human race and against my best wishes for you I put bullet in your head. I'd seriously consider Option 1 if I were you, but it's your choice."

John was on the verge of tears and shaking with both fear and relief. Scarface had this way of peering into you like God was checking out your soul." I promise I will never talk about this sir," John said slowly, and he meant it.

Scarface studied him very carefully for a few seconds, glanced to Cameron for confirmation and when she gave it he folded his arms and nodded. "Okay – that's it well done kid, I know I can trust you, you can ..." Scarface was about to tell John Reese he could go home, when from another level below there was an explosion and rattle of intense automatic gunfire . Scarface pressed his earpiece and shifted the cigar butt into the corner of his mouth. "Result lieutenant, should have guessed the slimy Grey bastard had a panic room down there. . . Bring him up" Scarface turned to Cameron, his mood seemed to have brightened, "One grade- A prisoner for interrogation. Let's see how these Grey bastards like things the other way round, huh?"

Cameron stiffened and politely nodded. Her expression became utterly inscrutable. "Perhaps our prisoner's interrogation could wait until John is safely on his way home?"

"Sure" he shrugged, "we would not want to be upsetting the sensitive Mr. Reese here now would we? So... Scarface snorted to John "you go on, run along home to mom kid and forget this entire killer robot-shit, okay." Scarface held him in his cold stare. He was getting angry again "You're sixteen rights John? .You want to know what piece of hardware I got when I was fifteen?" Scarface's expression hardened and he was looking at Cameron when he spoke .John noticed the tendons in Scarface's neck pulling tight like steel cables. John didn't have a clue what the man was talking about but he could tell his anger was aimed at Cameron, like a bully in the classroom. Against any instinct for self preservation John felt a wave of courage and indignation that both startled and exhilarated him. "I don't know what you mean sir, "John replied, and for the first time a note of defiance edged into his voice. Scarface drew himself up to his full height and his right fist curled.

"That is enough. "Cameron snapped stepping up to Scarface. Their eyes locked in a staring match. It was like witnessing the tension during a live stand-off between two nuclear armed superpowers. Scarface gave it up and looked away first. "Just get the hell out of here kid, and get home to your mom okay, before I change my mind, and you listen to what she says, whatever she says , your mom's not crazy right " Scarface said angrily.

"How do you know my mom?" demanded John squaring up to Scarface.

"Just get the hell out of here kid will ya, now."

Cameron grabbed hold of John's sleeve dragging him past Scarface. "Seriously John Reese come with me, now"When they passed she glanced back to eyeball Scarface hard, one last time on the way out. Hitchens, who was trying to get back into the room, jumped out of Cameron's way and backed against the door frame.

When John and Cameron had gone Scarface was staring at a blank wall, smiling through gritted teeth. "Star-crossed" he said as if speaking to no one in particular.

"'Star crossed', that the tag you gonna give this mission sir?" asked Hitchens.

General Connor, still posed with his boot on the terminator's skull ran his hand over the stubble on his scalp, shook his head and cracked a shit eating grin. ". Maybe it is. Hey, you remember when you were sixteen Hitches?"

"Never been exactly sure how old I am to tell the truth sir. Tried to work it out though. I figured I might have been maybe two on J.D., could have been three though. " Hitchens replied nodding thoughtfully as he contemplated the same section of concrete wall General Connor was staring into. Maybe in that world of damp half-lit tunnels women and men saw faces in the dank bloom that was the only variation in the concrete's surface like they perceived shapes and figures in the clouds they remembered seeing as children in the days of sky before the apocalypse.

General Connor growled softy, and slapped the young resistance fighter on his shoulder." Well don't worry about it soldier, you're not the only one who doesn't know how old they are. Come Hitch on let's go check out what the bubble-heads are screwing up this time."

Cameron held onto John's arm and steered him quickly toward the TDE centre of the building. The floors and walls were humming and singing with the vibrations emanating from behind the steel doors at the end of the tunnel.

"What happens when we get there?" John asked.

"I can't explain. A medic's going to give you a jab, you'll be asleep and wake up back at home, all this is going to seem like a dream, and that's all you need to know."

"All I need to know huh," John checked. "Colonel," John asked respectfully , "can you at least tell me what that guy's problem was with me back there? I totally thought he was going pull the trigger. "

"Don't worry, you won't ever run into him again after tonight. Look..." Cameron coughed like she was clearing her throat, "for the record he carries a huge burden of responsibility and he's a good man, but when things turn out like this he tends to take it out on the people he cares for and who care for him okay."

"Like you?"

Cameron stiffened up, "Yes like me but I give him back worse than I get. No more questions now."

When they were about twenty meters from the steel doors of the TDE unit a man appeared from around a corner with his hands over his head. He was being escorted by a group of solders towards them .They had weapons trained on him and one soldier was shoving him with his rifle butt to keep moving. Their prisoner sort of jerked forward walking as only an unwilling and reluctant prisoner does maybe on his last journey out of this world. As they got closer John could see the man was doing his best not to attract John's attention.

When the group had passed and were out of earshot Cameron pulled John to a halt with a tug of his arm." You know that man? I got the distinct impression you both recognized each other," she asked.

"That's Mr Fischer, my math teacher. Like what is he doing here?" John replied.

"I know that man too. Are you sure he's your math teacher?" asked Cameron.

"I certain, that's Mr. Fischer." said John."

"Wait here." Cameron pointed to a metal square in the floor, don't even step off this square, if you do someone will probably shoot you "

John stood dead still in the middle of the square, "why would they shoot me?"

"They would shoot you because you're wearing enemy uniform. I'll be back in less than two minutes. If anyone asks tell them Phillips told you to stand there and you don't move off that spot for anyone, you got that? "

"Cameron please,what's happening?"

"It's Fischer. Fischer changes everything." Cameron called over her shoulder as she sprinted back in the direction they'd came .He could just make out she was talking to Scarface and Hitch who were about thirty meters back down the tunnel . There seemed to be a real heated argument between the two of the, both Scarface and Cameron took turns pointing at John. Then one of the soldiers reached in his kit and handed Cameron something. When he did she stood on tiptoe put her arms around Scarface's neck and kissed him on the lips. When they broke apart she sprinted back up the tunnel to John.

When Cameron reached him she held out a small hypodermic syringe in her hand. "Roll up you sleeve," she said, and without any hesitation she stuck the needle into his arm and pressed the plunger all the way to the end with her thumb. John felt a wave of warmth flow though he and he started to go light headed.

"This is still Option Two isn't it?" John asked, realizing he was beyond the point of doing anything about it if it wasn't.

"Just stop talking. We've got to go; now "Cameron replied and she stood next to John waiting for him to lurch forward and fall to the floor. The last thing he remembered was the tunnel lights swirling like a merry-go-round, his knees buckling and giving way and Cameron catching him in mid fall, and then everything went very dark.

At 7.15 am, as on every morning during the week in term time, his mom Sarah knocked on John's door to wake him up. John grunted, "'kay I'm up," and then he opened his eyes and saw the morning light creeping across his bedroom ceiling from around the top edges of the curtains. He'd slept a deep heavy sleep full of fragmented dreams and nightmares. All his body ached. John rolled over and he jolted with the shock of what he beheld.

A pair of dark brown eyes studied him intently. Colonel Phillips was lying on her side next to him on top of his quilt wearing his purple Deep Purple T- shirt and nothing else. Before he could make a noise she snatched out a hand and covered his mouth and put a finger to her lips.

"It's okay we did Option 3, I decided to come back with you. I've lying been here all night trying to figure the optimum strategy. Do you have a steady girlfriend? I infer from the state of your room you probably don't." She whispered.

John made an 'mgumph' noise into the palm of her hand and violently shook his head.


	2. Chapter 2

Cameron experimentally released her hand from over John's mouth. Her eyes were intense, willing John to not to yell out. "Shssh," she whispered keeping her finger pressed to her lips. John gazed at Cameron like he was a disorientated child who had been woken up out of a nightmare. They could hear Sarah moving around in the kitchen. She was washing breakfast pots and placing them on the drainer, tidying up before to going in to school.

"What time does your mom go to work?" Cameron whispered.

"Huh?" John blinked. He sat up and ran his hand over his face. He clearly didn't know what was happening.

Cameron shook his shoulder "Look at me. I said what time does your mom leave the house to go to work?"

John swallowed .The insides of his mouth tasted of burnt metal. His throat was dry and his voice was a croaky whisper. "Eight, Mom goes out at eight."

It was 7:55

"What time do you go in?"

"About 9:00", John groaned.

"Here, I found it on the floor with all the rest of the crap you got down there," Cameron reached over the side of his bed and passed him up a quarter-full plastic bottle. John unscrewed the cap and gulped down the tepid water trying to make some sense of why Cameron was in his bedroom. It was like she'd walked out of a war-zone and climbed in through his window. There were smears of oil and soot on her face and her hair was greasy and lank. A small cut and bruise was healing at the side of her right eye. John inhaled through his nose and realized Cameron stank of hot metal and oil. It was like when the clutch on a truck catches fire in downtown traffic. He'd picked up on a strong trace of tough, professional military in Cameron's accent, keeping her voice low and firing off questions she sounded to John like Marines he'd heard in movies whispering to each other on a night Op.

"So does your mom ever hang around and drive you into school?" She asked, keeping the questions in quick fire bursts.

"No I go in later", John shook his head dumbly.

"You ride in to school on your bike?"- Cameron pointed to the helmets and leather jackets under his desk.

"Some days, I think, let me remember "John replied sitting up and backing away from her against the wall at the end of his bed. He checked the underside of his forearm and bicep. "What happened?" There was pepper rash of burns like he'd been brushed over with a fine aerosol of vaporized metal "What happened to me last night?"

Cameron's manner became almost severe, "you were in a restricted building with known terrorist. We raided the building and you got caught in the crossfire .We rescued you .Those burns on your arm are what we call metal flash. It's nothing to worry about and they'll heal in a couple of days."

John reached down and touched his right leg and winced .It felt he'd been stuck in the side of his thigh with a stiletto.

Cameron explained, " that was a small frag, I got it out of you last night whilst you were under. You won't need stitches but I'll clean and dress the wound properly when your mom's gone to work."

Cameron made an attempt at friendly banter like they were buddies in the field. "Its okay John, I only pulled a piece of frag out of you leg about the size of my fingernail," she held her little finger up to show him," bare hands, teeth, no medical kit , but its all part of the job. I got you dressed as well, so don't even mention it 'ky."

She waited for his response; John stared at her blankly like she was speaking Russian so she pushed on "so, I was kidding about using my teeth." Cameron tapped the mattress impatiently and shrugged waiting for him to reply; maybe she thought he was a like hard drive taking too long to start up.

John's memory of the previous night was in shards and pieces, ones that resolutely refused to cohere and make sense, but he caught glimpses: the man with the scarred face, his profile was lit for microsecond by flashes of memory like lightning into the darkness. "So, last night, all that was real? " John said as if he was hoping it couldn't have been.

"Uh huh, it was real," Cameron replied matter-of-factly.

John shivered when he spoke. "Then I'm in serious trouble aren't I?"

Cameron ran fingers over her mouth for couple of seconds like she weighing things up before she answered him, then she tilted her head and stared as if she was looking right through his eyeballs into the back of his skull. "It depends… I cut deal for you with my highest ranking officer, cooperate like you agreed and your case goes no further, and no one needs to know, anything. You help me get to Fischer and we'll keep our part of the deal. There'll be no record, no trial, everything will be like nothing's happened and when I've gone you can get on with whatever John Reese does with the rest his life."

John searched her face; he wanted to trust her, to believe what she was saying. "What about my mom?" he asked.

"I'll need to talk to her tonight when she gets in."

John's right hand had begun shaking," please, don't bring my Mom into this. I'll help you, but leave my Mom out of it."

"Your Mom's already in it. That's why I'm here. I'm going to talk to her for her own security, and yours, nothing else. She knows more than you think"

John shook his head in incredulity at the idea of his mom being implicated in a terrorist scenario. John's mom was a teacher UCLA; she was his _mom for god sakes_. "She's involved, how?"

"It's only Fischer we want, not you guys. Both you and your mom will be granted full immunity in return for your assistance. I promise" Cameron replied.

John glanced sideways at her and quickly away. He was conflicted by what she presented. On the one hand there was a young woman laying next him wearing only his Deep Purple T-shirt, ,and on the other , there was the enormity of his situation she was explaining to him. None of it made sense, John didn't know any terrorists and couldn't remember going out last night, let alone entering a restricted building, but he got an image of a soldier with a real mean expression standing behind Cameron . "Last night; they called you Colonel, so are you with the CIA?" John asked.

"Sometimes," she replied cryptically, then a sly grin spread across her mouth and cheeks transforming her, the tension of the previous night drained from her face and for the first time since waking up John saw Cameron was actually much closer to his age than he'd first reckoned. She seemed almost vulnerable. Cameron rolled on her stomach and propped herself up on her elbows resting her chin on her hands. "Hey Reese, you got me thinking here, am I really that bad to have around? I'm only in your life for maybe two weeks, max., then you'll never see me again. What is it with guys? You make like I scare the crap out of you."

John shrugged totally missing her attempt at friendly banter, and held his wrist. He hadn't been able look at her properly only make furtive glances, and when she caught him doing it one more time Cameron asked, "What's the matter? She asked raising her eyebrows in a puzzled frown.

"Nothing, my hand shakes when I get nervous." Replied John resting his head back against the wall shutting his eyes.

Cameron sighed, "Okay, I know a guy that happens to as well, just take some real deep steady breaths and try to remain calm."

They lay there for a while neither of them saying anything .When they heard Sarah shutting the door to go out to work Cameron got off the bed and went over to the window. She opened a side of the curtain and peered through the gap watching until Sarah was out of sight.

When Sarah had gone Cameron let go of the curtain. She caught a yawn with her hand, reached her arm over her head and stretched to the side as if she was loosening the muscles in her back. The T shirt rose outlining her buttocks and lower back and John's eyes travelled up down the length of her bare legs before he caught himself doing it and snapped away .He'd noticed Cameron's calves and ankles were dirty, cuts and grazes were healing on her legs and the soles of her feet were soiled up like the rest of her body.

"You know one thing I've been really wanting for ages?" she asked without turning around to face him.

John was still sitting up in bed, completely perplexed at the situation. "What?"

She turned and pointed a finger at his en suite bathroom." There's plenty of hot water in here right? This the cleanest towel you got?" she asked, picking a towel up off his floor and cautiously sniffing it before she walked over to his bathroom without waiting for him to answer her questions.

Cameron closed the door behind her and John heard the toilet seat go down. He could hear her urinating loudly, and in the middle of it she called out through the door , "hey Reese" your mom got any shampoo that's not like your man-boy stuff you got in here , you know something with fruit in it maybe, and conditioner?"

John got out of bed and went into his mom's bathroom .He grabbed a clean towel from the rail and returned with a large bottle of Morning Zest lemon and mint shampoo. He was about to knock on his bathroom door but before he did, the lock spun , the door opened a crack and an arm shot out grabbing the shampoo bottle from his hand, 'Huh thanks," she said taking the towel off him as well. The door shut in his face as quickly as it had opened and the lock spun again.

John stood in the middle of his room and glanced around. There was the sound of his shower running and his room filling with the scent of lemons and mint. John picked another towel up off his floor and headed over to his mom's shower.

John was dressed and he'd been in the kitchen about ten minutes. He'd already got through four slices of toast a bowl of cereal and he was waiting for the toaster to pop out another batch. He was really hungry.

Sarah had left ten dollars for him on the table and a note reminding him it was Friday and he had to hand in his Math assignment. John was trying to come up with plausible explanation as to why he hadn't finished the assignment last night . Being abducted by terrorists and rescued by the CIA and then mind-wiped by one of their operatives and having her around his house was a reasonable enough excuse, but not a plausible one, or one he preferred to use. He thought about calling in sick and handing his work in on Monday. John stared at the front of the cover of his assignment.

"John ..."

Her voice startled him. He hadn't heard Cameron stalking up behind his chair. She dropped a home medi-kit on the table and walked around to sit in the chair opposite.

She was wearing his shirt and a pair of his jeans with the bottoms rolled up. Her wet hair was tied back in a ponytail. "You know the other thing I've been totally craving?" she asked scanning over the breakfast bar. "You got any chocolate rice crispies?"

"Yeah, err second unit along top shelf" For the first time a flicker of amusement passed over John's face. The whole situation was completely crazy but she had this way of acting as though everything was completely normal for her.

Cameron found the cereal and measured out a bowl, poured the milk and then began eating it quickly like she was starving. "This is awesome" she said and raised her free hand and vaguely pointed into the air with her fingers and speaking quickly between mouthfuls. "Okay, I was deployed in Sector 7. We got incoming H.K.'s- they're like these unmanned drones, Hunter-Killers fly at night, and they are totally loaded with 50mm and big-bang shit like sidewinders. I'm tracking vectors and one of my one of lieutenants calls me up…" Cameron gulped another big spoon of cereal before she continued her story and circled her fingers in the air like a rotor"... Anyway I got my lieutenant in my ear he's up in Black Hawk 3 on intercept, and he's pressuring for H.K. coordinates and vectors. So, you know the first thing that comes into my head?" Cameron pointed at the bowl with her spoon, "'hmmm milk chocolate crispies, ice cold milk, bowl, spoon' -Good job I can multitask right, nearly got the poor bastard and his crew fried." Cameron laughed; it was a harsh Marines-style rapid- fire black humour laugh. She checked John for his response.

John smiled politely, he had no idea what she had just said, or how to reply and he was saved when the toaster pinged and he got up to collect another round of toast.

When Cameron finished off the first bowl of chocolate crispies she poured out another half bowl and consumed it as quickly as the first making sure there was absolutely nothing left. She picked a tissue out of the box on the table and wiped her mouth with it and sighed contentedly dropping the tissue into the empty bowl.

John shifted in his chair , whist she'd been talking and eating he'd been watching her closely, worrying what she'd be like if she shadowed him in school to find out what Fischer had been doing , which he vaguely recalled her threatening to do the night before, but he wasn't sure. The idea of having a CIA operative fresh from a combat mission hanging around him for a fortnight in his home and going into class with him made him feel very uneasy. He made a mental note of hiding his small bag of weed in a much more secure place than under the mattress in his bedroom

John tried to be as diplomatic as possible. "Cameron, err I need to call in sick today, I got this assignment that should have been done last night and I'm going to get some serious flack if it doesn't go in this morning, and I haven't got good reason why."

It was as if Cameron read his mind. A tiny bit of hurt showed in her face. "John, listen up: I got what, twelve days in a school in some hickstown in New Mexico, maybe two months here in LA? Before that I did some schooling over in Palmdale, but that was like another lifetime ago. Okay I haven't been to school." She frowned real cute, "and that's why I need you to help me get me through it. I can learn quickly... pleeese" she added, bobbing her head from side to side, almost painfully trying to look hopeful John would agree.

"What, you've never been to school, and you want to come into class with me?" John shook his head in disbelief.

"Hey It's not like I was a special education kid or anything. I'm the opposite John. I've only got to scan a problem and I can figure it out , it's like I know the answer already and I read books and files, I lean when I can. That's why the military pulled me, and that's why I'm a Colonel already ,never been a college student for more than two months okay, and I really would have liked to have had the choice, I didn't and that's how my life worked out. Hey, you don't believe me. Okay, I'll show you." Before he could react Cameron reached over and snatched up his maths assignment. She took a pencil out of the jar on the table and began rapidly filling in the remaining answers. After thirty seconds she flicked over to the second page and carried on answering the question at the same rate.

John tried to protest, "Err Cameron, I mean, Colonel, you know that's like a really important end of year assignment for me."

She held her hand up but didn't glance up from the page, like he was a member of her squad and she was working at her desk. She continued filling out the answers and didn't pause and carried on writing when even when out of nowhere she asked, "John, I've been thinking, is there a ballet class in your school."

"Er," John ran his hand over his brow and thought for a moment, it was one of those random questions she been flinging out since he woke up." Yeah, I think there is, they call it music and dance. "

Cameron stopped writing for a couple of seconds and her entire face lit up with a genuine smile. "Awesome" she said, and carried on without any further break in her concentration.

When she turned over to the last page she asked" How many questions do you normally get wrong in a Math assignment?"

"None if I can help It." replied John.

"Okay, I'm going to screw-up on number forty three, its got at least two differing theoretical answers anyway. Discuss forty three with your professor when it comes back marked,"

After another minute or so of intense scribbling Cameron closed the assignment, slid the paper across the table to him and carefully placed the pencil back in the jar in the exact position she'd pulled it out. She sat up with her arm over the back of the chair and flicked her fingers through her ponytail trying to separate the drying strands of hair whilst she was waiting for his response.

After glancing over the answers John nodded and conceded, "Okay, I believe you, and I did notice you copied my handwriting here as well, now that is…"John shook his head lost for words, "that was, impressive."

Cameron face lit up at for the second time, this time with a brilliant smile and John found it very hard to say what was going to say next.

'But err, here's the thing Cameron, I've got a small group of friends and it's a really tough school and like we are mostly in special higher classes and sometimes…"

"…sometimes, you get your head repeatedly banged into a locker door and shit like that right? I have been to a school briefly John, remember?" Cameron was looking right through him again, a she had a dangerous expression," and you're worried I'm going to go all CIA or whatever-I- am -colonel on these guys and significantly reduce your school population numbers before I leave?

'Yeah my Head. Locker .Bang:'shit like that, that's about the sum of it' "John nodded like he felt almost ashamed to admit it. "So you got to promise me if you hang around with us you're not going to like break some guy's arms or kill anyone if they push past us in the corridor. We put up with it alright because we're going to university and in couple of year's time they'll all be flipping burgers for us for the rest of their lives, it's kind of like the natural order of things. "

Cameron raised he right hand like she was under solemn oath "I promise I'm not going to unnecessarily injure or kill any person or persons behaving in a hostile way towards you or me whilst hanging around you and with your friends. Is that good enough?"

John weighed up what she said before delivering his second set of conditions, "right, one more thing, we're kids and we're not in the army, and like you keep whatever it you are doing to yourself, and you don't contact the cops and get them to bust any of my friends for smoking weed or drinking alcohol or generally having a good time."

"I got it, no calling the feds and busting your friends for minor felonies. Can I put my hand down now please and get ready from school" There almost an air of childish innocence about her, and she seemed genuinely excited about going to school.

"Okay, let's see what happens." John replied, surprised by the authority that had come into his voice when laying out his terms," I got to get ready too."

As John was getting up Cameron reached over and opened the medical box she had brought in

"Hey, John I need to dress that shrapnel hole in your leg before we go, it might start leaking if you're moving around on it all day. Okay drop you pants and sit up in your chair,"

John looked startled by her request.

"You haven't got anything I haven't seen before."

John remained uncomfortably perched in the chair with his pants at his ankles. When Cameron crouched between his legs and peeled the wrapper off the bandage he shut his eyes breathed in and out as steady as he could. John flinched when she pushed his legs apart and when her fingers brushed against his inner thigh as she wound the bandage. Cameron's voice brought him back to reality "Reese, I was wondering, and, I should have asked you this earlier …" John opened his eyes him to see her looking up at him.

"Did you say you got a girlfriend John?

John coughed, "hum sort of."

Cameron finished winding the bandage and ripped the fabric making two strands. . Before she tied the knot she looked up at him again and held him in a steady gaze.

"So tell me is that like: I have got a real life girlfriend or the bullshit sort of girlfriend you say to people so they don't go bothering you about your life lack of a girlfriend in real life. Actually I was wondering which one it is."

For a second John froze like potential road kill in a headlight beam and then he realized what she'd said hadn't really cut him because it was the truth. Cameron was the bluntest person he'd ever met in his life, but despite her obvious capabilities, her directness was almost childlike, and he sensed there was a teenage girl, he caught glimpses of her hiding behind the bravado and army talk, and she was vulnerable, like any other girl his age. This realization hit him bang in the head like Kurtz's diamond bullet and John chose his words carefully. "Er Cameron, it's kind of more like the second category you mentioned, but I have got a girl-friend , she's from the chess club, but she's just a friend, and she's got a boyfriend already,"

"What a waste , huh," Cameron replied like it was an obvious fact. She put her finger on the bandage ends to tie the knot. "Okay" Cameron slapped him gently on his other thigh, and stood up and started packing away the small Medikit "that's it soldier you're mended, you can pull your pants up now."

After John pulled up his pants he paused and swallowed before he spoke "Cameron, do you mind me asking, have you got a boyfriend back where you come from?"

Cameron put her hands on her hips and she scowled "You crazy Reese?" The only guy I ever wanted got himself married... look, John its all about politics and very complicated and maybe I'll explain sometime. "

"I don't understand," said John, " but you're… beautiful, you could have any guy you wanted. "

"John," Cameron tilted her head to the side, "why are you telling me this?"

"Because you're going to have to really watch your back in school."

"Why?" asked Cameron going on alert.

"Because the other girls will feel threatened by you and act jealous and try to screw you around because of how you look. It's the same if you're really intelligent or good in any subject, that's how it works in school. Don't worry too much about it; I'll try to watch out for you."

Cameron paused to process this new threat she had not considered before. "Promise you'll look out for me?"

John raised his right hand like she had done earlier, "I promise I'll watch out for you when I can"

"Thanks replied Cameron, taking the band off her ponytail and shaking out her hair. "Say, John, you know you got two leather bike jackets in your room, can I borrow one, we've got to get ready now otherwise we're going to be late for school."

"You really want to go don't you?"

"Yeah, I really want to go to school, okay." replied Cameron.


	3. Chapter 3

I want to say thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the story. If you want to leave a review remember I do find feedback very helpful and really I enjoy getting reviews.- I won't bite, whatever you have too say. Any help with American street phrases or names or slang is particularly welcome - I'm a Brit.

This is a very different take on an infiltrator , but it's a very different environment from the one in the series. If you're looking for' Jameron' , please read the Fischer part of the story before skipping onto the second part of chapter 3 because the second part of this chapter won't make half as much sense without it.

And so it goes.

* * *

Fischer's escort dragged him into a room and dumped him in a chair. When Scarface entered he sat down and started working on his laptop at the desk. He totally ignored Fischer who held his head in his hands and stared pathetically at the floor between his feet.

The door swung open and closed again quietly. Fischer trembled when he heard the footsteps and saw boots approaching. He didn't look up.

Scarface finally broke his silence." This is Demitri. That IED you left or us to find on you panic room door caused some serious damage to his organics. I wouldn't blame him for being pissed at you right now."

The massive figure of the Russian triple eight hulked in front of Fisher. Parts of his face shoulder and right hand were burnt away. Demitri took a step forward and Fischer tried to propel the chair backwards with his feet away from Demetri. ""Stay away from me. I know what you are, he warned me about things like you." Fischer yelled.

Demitri walked behind Fischer and placed his hand on Fischer's shoulder. The large metal claw rested an inch away from his neck. It reeked of seared flesh and Fischer turned his head as far as his neck muscles would allow and shut his eyes. "I'm not who you think I am. I didn't plant that bomb, he did." Fischer said.

"Are you Charles Fischer?" The machine asked.

"I am Charles Fisher, but I'm not the one you want," he replied.

"Do you mean there's another Charles Fischer?"

"Yes, he's exactly like me. I'm not him."

The machine was frighteningly calm and a faint trace of sarcasm crept into its voice. "So where is this 'other' Fischer?"

"He's gone." Fischer shook, panic was rising inside him .The triple eight increased its grip onto his shoulder.

"Where did he go?"

"He went into my world." Fischer opened his eyes and he tried to reach up to push away the triple eight's hand. The pressure suddenly increased and Fischer's face contorted with the pain. "For the love of God I'm telling you the truth, I'm not him, he's gone, I'm not the one you want." Fischer cried out, "I'm not the one you want…" he collapsed forward clutching his shoulder when the triple eight released his grip.

Connor and the Cyborg exchanged glances. Connor shrugged and rapidly typed into the laptop. He put it on speak. "This is Connor, you me got those files from the TDE's central nervous yet?"

"Yes sir, "the bubbletech replied. "We got blips going back thirty eight days; they've been shifting to and from, right up to nine hours before we entered the buildings. Time fall all happens same date, a point north of Pasadena Highway, Sept. 22 2012. Sir, it looks like they've been experimenting. Check this please, we found it downstairs, I'll feed you in."

"...Are those human?" Connor's voice trailed off.

"Yes sir. It's a freezer and there's another room identical to the one you can see, it's through the double doors. Both are racked with cadavers. They appear to be in varying states of dissection. Most of them look like they've been fried from the inside out. We figured these are the test subjects they used for calibrating mass-energy TDE conversions before they brought John Reese through. They were all cooked when they fired them through and dead on arrival."

"How many are in there?"

"Thirty eight so far sir. We haven't searched in the reactor area; we're waiting for the Engineers to give us a clear. "

"Any of the cadavers resemble Fischer?"

"Hard to say sir, most of the males haven't got faces or full dermal layers."

"Okay, get Infantry to do a full search, look for anyone resembling Fischer, call me up when you find something."

Connor returned his attention to Fischer. For a second he gripped the side of the laptop and looked like he was going to beat him to death with it.

Fischer ran his hand over his forehead as he spoke. "You won't find him, I told you he's already gone. "

"Where did he go?"

"Where do you think?"

Connor tapped the table with his fingers, and glared at Fischer. "Demitri, tell me this piece of shit is lying and he really is Fischer."

Demitri tipped his head to the side and paused for a few seconds before he explained. "It's almost impossible to determine: 800 series have interrogated collaborators who had been effectively trained by Fischer's teams to evade our sensors. Using standard methods I can not state for certain if this man is lying or not."

Fischer slammed his fist onto the chair's armrest." I'm not that Charles Fischer

Will you listen to me?"

"Shut up," Connor barked. "What about radiation levels?"

"He's absorbed higher than surface already. The TDE's rigged off a minimally shielded reactor. That's 503 M away. There's a natural cave system and underground water source, that's why they built it here."

"What _can_ you tell me about him?" The level of Connor's voice rose with impatience.

The triple eight held a hand out as if he was weighing a basketball, or a skull.

"I can tell you he's definitely not a clone, there are no implants or tracking devices, he's an exact genetic match."

"Okay, what about the tattoos? Survivors all reported Fischer was covered in them. "

The machine folded his arms." He could have been planning to blend in with the emerging civilian population .The machines Fischer collaborated with had advanced dermatological techniques ," he gestured with his hand to his face, "they've developed the same technologies Skynet used when it created my organics. A basic procedure for them would have been to sample from Fischer and then to grow and graft. I couldn't tell if that's what they've done or not."

"So there's nothing you can do to determine?"

"Not at a biophysical level."

Connor stroked his chin for a moment, "okay start pulling the bastard apart. Make him talk."

Demitri grabbed Fischer's wrist and made like he was going to snap it off his arm.

"Wait! " Fischer yelled, "Stop … the boy in the tunnel, I'm his math teacher, I'm a friend of the family. You can not treat me like this it's insane."

"Yes we can," replied Connor. "You are going to tell me exactly what a sixteen year old John and thirty four Sarah Reese are even doing in LA 2012 or you're going to be flapping a stump on the end of that arm in five seconds"

"Okay, Okay, I'll tell you what I know." Fischer held his free hand up in surrender.

"Sarah Reese, tell me when and how you met her," Connor demanded.

"Sarah started working supply at my school 2000; she was part time, single parent"

"What's the name of the School?"

"Esperanza; Hope Valley High, it's in the North Eastern neighbourhood, near the Pasadena Freeway."

"And John, how old was he when Sarah started?"

"John was four I think, there's nursery and kindergarten at the school, for parents and teachers "

"Tell me about Hope Valley."

"Er," Fischer swallowed and broke into a patter which he seemed familiar with

repeating." We are located in a multicultural area. There are high levels of urban deprivation; you know poverty, drugs, gangs, families on food stamps. When Sarah arrived it was like she was on a mission from day one. They were wringing out the guys downtown at the education department. Within a year the team Sarah was working with got big funding and set up special classes, you know ,computer science, linguistics, coding, related math , and for social we now got full time martial arts and dance on the curriculums, and we have after-school 14-18 youth groups, everything from boxing to chess, gaming . She was amazing , she lobbied and got links to the military, Kalitech : that's basically NASA and she developed work placements , we got ex students who've moved onto UCLA , MIT , WestPoint Apple. We've won awards; we're most turned around school in LA County.

"So where is she now?"

"She moved onto UCLA, and contracts out to MIT, she's developing bridging courses for our ex students and similar. She's doing the same thing at UCLA she did with our kids at Esperanza and she's working a doctorate in language acquisition in children."

Connor grinned and point the tip of his tongue to he front teeth. "You trying to tell me where you come from, your high school had Sarah Reese gunning the downtown education department for grants and funding: I'm not surprised the poor bastards rolled over."

Up until that point Fischer had been desperately searched for a connection. He was like a drowning man reaching out for anything in Connor he could get a hold of. "Did you know Sarah Reese? "He asked hopefully.

"Kind of ran into Sarah. Tell me more about her, she sounds interesting." Connor replied settling back in his chair making like he was keen to listen.

"Sarah was relentless, she kept going at the ed. department until they handed over the money we needed, and she wouldn't give up. She even short-term fostered some of the kids in her own house because social services didn't get their act together quick enough."

"Keep going," he waved his hand at Fischer to continue his account. "Demitri," Connor ordered the cyborg, "go and find two coffees and a blanket."

After five minutes Fischer had finished describing the school and he'd outlined what he knew about Sarah and John Reese's lifestyle. He'd become more confident and at ease with Connor and moved on to expounding his theory of what he thought he was doing in an alternative timeline. Connor rested his elbow on the desk and his hand on his cheek and made like he was interested, taking it all in…" it's like a paradox resolving itself. Where I am now, this is a bifurcation point, two branches, same tree different branches, different probabilities and you got energy, it's like the wind, and it makes the branches bend and touch ..."

Connor scratched his stubble scalp "And you're like err, this scabby tree rat jumping between these branches?"

"Yes, exactly, "Fischer smiled delighted Connor had grasped the metaphor and continued. "You have Fischer A, that's me, and Fischer B that's him."

"You mean I got two tree rats running around my branches now."

"Yes two identical tree rats and they've swapped branches."

"So whose rations are these guys going steal when they get hungry, huh?" Connor made like he was dumb and frowned, and then laughed at his own joke.

Fischer smiled politely. "I don't know if the metaphor stretches that far."General

I really want to know, please, what do I, mean what does Charles Fischer, do in this time branch?"

"What would you guess?" Connor stroked his chin.

"Well, I think he's a theoretical physicist and I guess he's been working with a private corporation experimenting with time travel and robotics and your government found out ,and you're not exactly happy with it ,and, err here we all are. "

"You met the 'other' Fischer, did he tell you he was involved in?"

"Nothing beyond what I've told you. He administered a narcoleptic. Before I went under he told me it was to prevent time-branch contamination. When I woke up he'd gone. I was locked in that panic room. He left a note saying stays in the back room keep away from the door, it was rigged with explosives."

"You could have warned Demitri about the explosives"

"I'm sorry I swear I didn't know what was happening … Listen ... "Fischer leaned forward, "in 1999 I was going on to MIT to do a PhD , theoretical physics …whatever Fischer B can do I can do… I can help you develop this program."

Connor picked at a gap in his teeth "So why didn't you go on to MIT to do your doctorate Mr. Fischer?"

"After graduating I worked as volunteer at Hope. It was a year out. Kids like that, once you start working with them you can't walk away, they become your life. The school offered me a full time post, I never looked back" Fischer swallowed, then clammed up. Demitri had returned to the room.

Connor carried on in a good natured way "You know, you sound like a real good guy Charles. It's a shame we haven't met before." Connor took the coffee from Demitri and raised his cup to Fischer.

Fischer reached out his hands expectantly for the second cup. "Thank you so much," he said.

Demitri didn't pass the cup to him.

"Oh, that's for Demitri, not for you," Connor spoke slowly and his expression suddenly hardened, his eyes turning cruel and cold as emerald ice.

"I don't understand," said Fischer.

Connor sighed like he was explaining a well known fact, for the thousandth time." US designated triple eight models have a preference for chocolate. Russian trips prefer coffee, their preferences mirror the MRE's each batlle group carried during the height of the conflict; one of the minor attention to details that originally allowed the trips to infiltrate resistance units more effectively. It's a glitch maker you can't write over during their reprogramming. ..I thought you would have known that."

A shadow of fear crossed Fischer's face."How… how could I possibly have known that? "He stuttered.

Connor slammed the palm of his hand on the desk. "Because I haven't believed a fucking word you've said since you started talking. You are repeating what Fischer A told you when you interrogated him; you're telling me what I want to hear, especially about my mother. God rest her soul."

Fisher's eyes darted in panic and confusion "Your mother?" I haven't said anything about your mother, I don't know your mother, what do you mean, why would I lie to you?"

"Because you couldn't fire up the TDE quickly enough to jump when Resistance advanced on this facility. It takes a twelve hour cycle to power up, and you were 10 hours in when we blew the front door. You killed Fischer B dumped his body and now you're pretending to be him in the hope were going to send you over to his AU and you've taken his Identity – You're a war criminal Fischer, you backed the wrong side, you lost, and this was your exit plan. Well fuck you; you're not going anywhere now buddy."

Fischer sat like he'd been hit in the forehead by a stun bolt. "That wasn't me" he finally said.

Connor got up and made for the door "I've had enough of this bullshit-You got until Phillips gets back. If she locates another Fischer alive, she'll bring him back and she'll interrogate both of you, and then I'll decide. Phillips is out 14 days AU time. She's back on the next cycle, that's ten hours our time. She hasn't failed me yet, so don't bother to get your hopes up. "

Connor and Demitri headed for the door. Connor snatched the blanket off the triple eight and wrapped it around his shoulders like a poncho "It's going to start getting cold in here, "Connor called back over his shoulder.

A young blonde haired woman wearing resistance uniform came into the room and closed the door behind her. She dimmed the lights and sat down in Connor's chair and began working on the laptop.

"Please…help me," Fischer said holding his hands out to her.

The woman fingers didn't stop moving on the keyboard, her face was lit by the screen. She looked up for a second and her eyes glowed red. Then she returned to her task as if he didn't exist.

Mr. Fischer wrapped his hands around himself, curled up in the chair and started crying.

* * *

John stood a couple of paces away from the vending machines. They were over the hallway from the school administration office. He leaned his back against the

Cafeteria wall and folded his arms .He felt like he'd spent twenty four hours straight gaming on his computer. The hallway echoed and reeled with students voices and when he lifted his shades the bright sunlight from the windows needled into his eyeballs.

The janitor pulled the mail trolley out of the office. It was loaded with packages and delivery parcels. One wheel squeaked and the steel cage clattered and rattled as it rolled over the wooden floor. The janitor steered the trolley through the meandering crowds of students heading into their lessons. "Come on guys, out the way, mail coming through," he called. Everything seemed so normal, but John felt he was still over the dark rainbow, someplace on the other side of normal.

He could make out Cameron's figure through the obscure glass panel in the administration office door. She was in front of the main desk using the office telephone and every so often she turned around to make sure he was still there.

John checked the time on the clock down the hallway .It was an old fashioned LED square hung from the ceiling and his attention was completely drawn to the two pairs of vertical red dots that separated the hour, minutes and seconds. His hand shook and he closed his eyes tight waiting for the sensation to pass. What the hell was it with the red dots and what was it he couldn't remember from the night before?

"Hey-cloud of seagulls !"

John heard the girl's voices and he jumped when one of them tapped him on the shoulder with the file she'd been carrying.

It was Chelsea Calendine and Angelique Martinez .Their smiles broke into giggles at John's startled reaction. .

"What's with you? Why you standing next to the machines and why are you wearing shades?" Chelsea asked, frowning at him like he was total style dweeb, which he was.

"I'm fine ", John replied trying to act normal.

"You don't look okay, you're kind of paler than usual and you're jumpy "Angelique said, peering at his face like she was inspecting him, "and what's with the rash?" she traced her hand over her cheek mirroring where the vaporised metal had scorched John last night.

Angelique feigned an angry expression and playfully made like she was going to slap him on the back of his head. "You get busted for alcohol last night John, you waiting to see the principal? Sarah's totally going to kick your ass when she finds out."

"No, "John protested "it's nothing like that. Too much caffeine; it brings my skin up like this. I didn't get to bed until three Am: Math assignment," John pointed with his thumb over his shoulder at his bag where the assignment was.

Chelsea gave John a gentle shove." So are you going into class today or you going to stand here stargazing?"

John took a deep breath, "actually, I'm erm, I'm waiting for Cameron."

"Cameron, Who's he?" Angelique looked up and down the hallway for the new guy.

"Actually Cameron's a she, and _she's_ over there in the admin office running through an enrolment."

The two girls turned and they could see Cameron through the glass. She was still talking on the office landline and standing with her back to them.

"So, where's she from?" Chelsea asked.

"Palmdale, Vista High, she's staying with my mom and me for a couple of weeks." John replied hoping for no more questions.

Chelsea quickly summed up the situation as she saw it. "Palmdale Vista huh? So we got a rich new kid, fresh out of rehab and your mom's doing her social work again, right?"

"Bitch's going down a few neighbourhood scales moving in here. What, is she on probation to Sarah?" Angelique muttered.

"Plamdale, she's gotta be an Ice-queen ho ," said Chelsea.

The girls shifted their hands onto their hips, their shoulders went down on their haunches and their eyes made daggers across into the admin office .John had never really fully taken it in before, but Angelique and Chelsea and his other friends could become very protective around him. John realized the situation was already potentially sliding to the bad, very bad.

"No, look you've got this completely wrong, Cameron's not on probation." John ran with the cover story he and Cameron had fabricated on the walk into school. "Cameron's mom and dad are old friends of my mom; I've known her since we were little kids. Cameron's mom and dad are splitting up; she's staying with us whilst they sort things out. Cameron doesn't even know who she's going to be living with yet. She might even be staying with us for a term. Look, Cameron and me had a thing; I stayed over at her place last summer when my mom was working at UCLA. Mom's not doing any social work again, okay … no offence Chels."

"None taken," snapped Chelsea. " Whatever. She getting your bedroom like I did? You back in the box room with your Star Wars stuff and Transformers and those cute 'jamas with Spiderman?"

John pointed his finger at Chelsea, " Bedroom reallocation, _that_ is still a sore point."

"You know you love me really, John." Chelsea grinned and reached up, took his shades off, folded them and put them in his pocket and pulled up the zip.

John blinked in the bright light "What did you do that for?" he asked.

"You always look like a total dork in shades,"she said. "See you in class John."

"Yeah do not be late, "Angelique feigned a harsh glare for a couple of seconds

When she caught up with Chelsea, Angelique turned for a second and smiled back at him.

John watched as the girls swung out their hips and walked side by side towards the math room.

"Hey, why exactly you hanging around here Reese?"

Four lean- muscled guys rolled right up to John and they stood with their arms folded in front of him. They were in his face. One had serious bruising around his eyes; another a swollen, cut lip. "Well?" the guy with the bruised face said.

"Oh, sorry, I zoned out, for a second "John replied

"Okaay," one of the guy's said when the saw the girls John had been watching and they all stood and looked until the girls had gone around the corner into the math block.

"So, why are you standing here? You been busted for alcohol?"

"No, I haven't been busted," John said, trying not to let any irritation show and he made a mental note never to stand beside the vending machines, if he ever did have a real hangover. "I'm waiting for someone in Admin, a new student."

"You missed training last night John, those pro's came up from downtown, excellent sparring session, you missed it … say, you okay ? You got zits, right here John." The guy pointed to his own cheek.

"Yeah I'm fine, just had way too much math to get through last night, I'll be in the gym tomorrow Okay."

"You better be John, remember: Golden Gloves training trials next week. We could be in there." He held his fist up like a boxer about to throw a punch. You coming to math or what ?"

"Not yet, I got to wait around here. I'll see you later in class okay." John hugged each of them quickly and the group headed off down the hallway to their class. When John glanced back to Admin to his relief Cameron was finally emerging from the office. She had an armful of leaflets, pamphlets and application forms.

"You sign up for everything in the school?" John asked.

Cameron gave an apologetic shrug. "Sorry," she said lowering her head sheepishly like he was going to yell at her. Then she stepped behind him quickly and unclipped the straps to his bag and began loading it up with her papers whilst she spoke. "Thanks for waiting, I had to get in contact with my dad, they screwed up my data transfer, I got the wrong NI .He's bringing my ID over at 12.30 so I can enrol, but I'm okay to hang around you until he turns up. Dad says he's buying you lunch for your trouble. He really wants to meet you." Cameron added enthusiastically, as she was clipping up his bag.

"Your dad?" John asked suspiciously. "I don't believe this guy's actually going to be your dad is he, Cameron."

Cameron looked way and then back at like she was almost hurt, "Well, he could be my dad, if I had one." She glanced him over, "what happened to your shades John?" she asked, making it sound like 'what happened to your arm, where did it go John?'

"My friend Chelsea, she made me take them off, said I looked like a dork wearing shades."

"I thought you really looked cool in shades," Cameron snapped. "Come on ," she said putting her arm though his arm ," I want to go to Math please, like now, today," She was almost pleading with her eyes to go to math and nearly started dragging John to class as if they were ten years old and it was a free weekend in Disneyland .

"Yeah Math, great "John sighed falling in step with her. "You taking your shades off as well Cameron? And, are those my mom's shades?"

"No. I'm not taking them off. Cameron replied curtly "Yes they are your mom's, she won't mind, trust me." Cameron walked faster ,shook her hair out behind her and straightened up. John noticed Cameron's hip and thigh brushing against his, it seemed deliberate thing she was doing and when they came around the corner there was a group of students talking outside the Math room. Cameron took her arm out of his and slipped it across John's lower back.

Angelique and Chelsea and some of the other students turned their heads and weighed Cameron up as they approached. "What the _hell_ you looking at there bitch," Cameron whispered under her breath.

John swallowed like there was something in his throat that wouldn't go down.

" I'm not taking bullshit on any of this, and neither are you John. Boyfriend - girlfriend routine, that's what we agreed, keeps everything simple, reduces questions and curiosity. Stick with the plan Okay." Cameron said firmly. She scanned over the group of students and her expression hardened like John remembered it from the night before in the tunnel. When she was sure they were the centre of attention for everyone hanging around outside the classroom, to John's surprise Cameron patted his butt and he felt her fingers working their way inside the back pocket of his jeans and she sort of steered him by the seat of his pants towards the classroom door.

John ran his tongue around his lips. His mouth had gone dry. He'd already worked out if he got the diplomacy wrong here; it didn't take a statistical genius to predict one massive bitch fight kicking off before the end of school.

Cameron stopped a few meters away from the other students making like she was quickly glancing over the posters in the hallway .Mr. Fischer was heading towards them. He looked rough and unshaven, a little unsteady on his feet. He was wearing his usual crumpled grey suit and carrying his battered ancient leather briefcase in which he kept a laptop and reams old fashioned paper notes. If he had noticed them, Fischer gave no indication he'd even registered John and Cameron's presence before he went into the classroom.


	4. Chapter 4

I've combed through this chapter a few times . There's still going to be some typos I've missed . So PM me and I'll get them changed or if you like point them out in your review. If you want to do a developed crit please do and remember this is for fun, not for reward, so enjoy reading ( I hope) and enjoy writing what you think about the story and this chapter.

Huge thanks to Riskreader for some extremely thoughtful and insightful support, and thanks everyone for taking the trouble to review.

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Five minutes before the start of lesson Mr Fischer strolled past the groups of students hanging around in the hallway. On a normal Friday morning Fischer's students went straight in to his class and sat down, but this Friday morning they were buzzing with interest in the new girl. She had her arm around John and her hand in his back pocket, and although the curious students naturally assumed she was out of earshot, Cameron was of course listening to every word they were saying.

Cameron appeared to be checking out the posters on the notice board, steeling herself before venturing over to meet John's classmates. As Cameron made to set off towards them John leaned into the wall and put his arm out like a barrier to stop her.

"Okay, so you want to talk about this?" she said.

"Last night, they let Mr. Fischer go?"

"Evidently," Cameron replied in a matter of fact way.

"So you people, you just brain-wiped him and he doesn't remember anything? How do you even do that to people?"

Cameron leaned on the wall mirroring John and lapsed into her rapid fire Marine-speak, it was almost a forced whisper. "You got a problem with that Reese?"Understand: my people totally know what they're doing okay. Fischer's gonna have woken up with half a bottle of tequila inside him and think whatever did last night was probably the best thing ever ,and he'd gone up to Fischer heaven ,and he must have fallen out of bed or back to earth to get all bruised up like he is. So it's no bad deal. Nobody gets hurt on this routine. We just find what the guy's always wanted to do and let him think he's done it."

John rolled his neck so the side of his cheek brushed on his shoulder to make the point about how stiff his muscles still were, "is that like falling three stories out of bed?" he asked.

"My guys might have bumped Fischer on a low wall once or twice getting him back to his place but I was supervising on both reinstalls and I know we didn't drop you. Look I need to observe and record Fischer's normal behaviour and routines that is all, it's not like I'm going to ice the guy or anything here." Cameron leaned closer into Johns face" – so, what's with the arm still? "

John didn't lower his arm. "Is that what you're doing with me, observing recording, passing information back to your superiors?"

Cameron reached up and gently rested her hand on his shoulder for a moment. " John, that's not what I'm doing with you. Like I said you're granted full immunity, no records are being kept on your case, end of."

Cameron took her shades off and held them in her hand and John tried to read Cameron's intent in her eyes, but it was difficult, because, as he was discovering they were a conundrum, thos ebrown eyes were both beautiful and utterly inscrutable.

One of the girl students called out from the group behind him. "Hey John , we know where you took off to for those two weekslast summer break now don't we , you sure kept quiet about 'Cameron', Sarah's gonna go batshit over you when she finds out." There was a distinct rise in the volume of from the students outside the class

Cameron shot a glance over Johns shoulder and then back at him "Who's she?"

John sighed "That, that is Stacey Hines…Stacey's Esperanza's walking social media site, can't keep her mouth shut or her fingers off a pad. Watch what you say around her otherwise it will be all over Facebook tonight. Otherwise, Stay's harmless. Did she have her cell out?"

'Yep' Cameron replied tapping her fingers against her thigh, like there was a holstered weapon down there.

"Then our picture's already hit the Facebook crapo-rotors and mom's going to be texting me at break-: John, so who's the new girlfriend?"

Cameron peered around Johns shoulder at Stacey. Any trace of humour froze from Cameron's expression. "Don't worry there won't be any lasting images. My team will clean up as they go along. They'll be into all the networking sites by now .Were covered."

"Clean up? You know, that sounds like agency-speak,' and it's scary. "John pointed a finger at Cameron and he leaned closer into her face and stared right back at her. Rather unnervingly for John, Cameron didn't flinch or back away in the slightest. "You and your guys are not going to start a war with my friends here Cameron, we agreed on that." John's tone sounded almost threatening and the way he spoke obviously startled him after he'd spoken.

Cameron tried to make out what John had just done "Were you like… trying to give me an order there John?" she asked, inclining her head, the start of a scowl crossing her face and it appeared she was considering things, real deep for a moment.

John quickly backtracked realizing he'd overstepped the mark. " What err no, just saying… don't fall out with my friends, please, remember I got to live 'round here after you've gone, 'colonel'."

Cameron's lips curled to smile and she nodded understandingly, "I won't fall out with your friends. Will you get this Reese? I'm absolutely not going to let anything harm you, your mom or your friends alright, I promise. Hey"…, she held him by both his shoulders and looked into his eyes like she was proud of him. Before he could react she reached up and quickly kissed the side of his cheek and rested her chin on his shoulder with her mouth close to his ear.

"What did you do that for?" John tried to step back but she neld him firmly .

Cameron whispered into his ear , "First, your friend Stacy's gone into overdrive, so, we're posing for the Stacey Hines Facebook hall of fame, that's until it gets wiped. Second, hum, that was for you tying to give me an order there - nice try kiddo ," Cameron patted him gently on his upper thigh and pulled away so he could see her face. To his relief she was smiling, with obvious amusement.

"What's funny?" John asked.

Cameron touched her index finger to her lip and ran it down her chin and then still smiling, she gently shook her head like she was clearing a chain of thought from her mind. "You just got the cutest growl of all time Simba, so… I couldn't resist. Now, you going to put that arm down and let me go to my Math class?" Cameron raised her eyebrows and glanced over the arm John still had outstretched blocking her path . She took her shades out of her pocket making a deliberate show of putting them back on.

When they entered the classroom two seats had been left for them on the desk in the centre of the class .A rippling murmur of interest followed their movement. Fischer was glancing down the register filling it in. He looked up from his desk. "Cells off." Okay listen up: Everyone this is"- Fischer paused as he rechecked the note in his hand to make sure he'd read her namecorrectly, "Cameron Phillips. Cameron, this is everyone. As regular students will be aware we don't do stand up and speak introductions here, but I'm sure you will all familiarize quickly. In case you don't know Cameron; I'm Charles Fischer assistant head of Math, Esperanza-Hope. That's it, welcome to the class." Cameron nodded briefly in recognition and Fischer carried on. Despite his obviously fragile condition Mr. Fischer managed to put on a brave face, like he was absolutely determined to get through the day

Fischer rubbed his hands together like he was warming them up and addressed the class, " Right, it's Friday , we've all been working hard , and last night I got to thinking about algorithms and probabilities and how they are used in the gaming and other industries like online gambling, and err, for the sake of scientific Interest rather than my own amusement and profit," Fischer stroked his beard and grinned to let the class know he was joking," I thought I'd try my hand at online poker. Well, by three Am this morning, I had my head on the desk and woke up to find seven hundred and fifteen brand new dollars in my bank account, an amount which even in my wildest dreams I have never won before, and I'm never going to try to attempt win again. So, I figured this morning we'd take a closer look at online gambling systems particularly their reliance on specific math; we'll stick to probabilities for today and work through algorithm sometime next week. So…"

Mr. Fischer was a born story teller, and even in his fragile condition there wasn't a class or listening human ear he couldn't hold spell-bound. He pulled out packs of cards, rolled dice, flipped coins and slapped them down onto his wrist; he got students to calculate the odds and wrote them on the chalkboard. Fischer repeatedly demonstrated how easy it was to throw away money and why the Casino loaded the odds and like a machine it gathered up a pre-calculated amount of the stake from the operation. He explained the system worked because most people didn't understand the simple calculations behind the games they were playing. If you were a human student time would flow enjoyably and easily in Fischer's lessons, like his voice.

After the class disbanded John and Cameron kept back from the rest of the students when they headed down to the cafeteria and when they were alone enough to talk and Fischer had gone, John spoke in a quiet voice, almost a whisper, "so you still think Mr Fischer's a crazy terrorist?"

Cameron shrugged like Fischer was a boring part of her job and she didn't really care what happened to him "That's for my boss to judge. For what it's worth, right now, Fischer seems a genuine enough guy, and if he is, he'll be okay."

"I got to go to the girls' room "said Cameron pointing over the hallway.

"I'll wait here for you; I'm not going to run away or anything."

"What do you mean?" asked Cameron.

"The way you're always checking where I am like every five seconds."

Cameron brushed a strand of hair over her shoulder and smiled, "so go on John Reese, I'm interested; why wouldn't you run away from me?"

John folded his arms, rested his back on the wall and grinned. "Because you know where I live and the CIA might have some kind of death star positioned over my house. I'll be right here, don't worry." John pointed to the spot he was standing on.

Cameron wagged two fingers at him as if to say 'okay you got me there' and, she made to go over to the restroom, instead she paused and glanced at the ceiling and shook her head and frowned. "Reese, just to be absolutely clear on this, we don't actually have any 'death stars' up there." Then she spun on her heal and made for the restroom. "We got nukes, though" she called back matter- of-factly, over her shoulder.

Cameron slowly washed her hands at sink. She'd been tracking movement behind her in the mirrors. As she'd predicted Chelsea and two other girls from the class had been following and they'd caught up with her. One of them was Angelique, the other a lean dark-skinned girl. She was wearing a light blue tank top with Northern District Thai Boxing Club printed on the front. The three girls came up and stood behind Cameron. Cameron didn't stop washing her hands.

Chelsea sat against the sink next to Cameron with her back to mirror. "John sure kept you quiet. Now I know where he took of to last summer." Chelsea said glancing Cameron up and down.

Cameron took her hand off the tap, methodically shook the water from her hands and calmly reached up for a paper towel, all the time keeping Chelsea bang in her sight. "John keeps some things close to his chest , Cameron replied . "So, what do you want?"

Chelsea folded her arms glared at her "Give you the House Rules"

"And they are?" asked Cameron, wiping her hands.

"You know, when I was going though the worst crap of my life Sarah looked after me, "said Chelsea.

"And me, Sarah let me stay in her home, until I got a family placement."" said the boxing girl, stepping in a pace.

"So, here's how it goes" Chelsea continued, "you don't steal nothing from Sarah and you don't mess her around okay, but here's the most important rule," the girls glanced between themselves as if to reinforce the importance of what Chelsea was saying " John. "

"John, what about John?" Cameron looked like she was trying to appear mostly uninterested in what they had to say.

Chelsea leaned forward into Cameron's personal space " get this bitch, John's like a brother okay, he's really intelligent but he's not always, 'you know' streetwise, and you already got him glued to your side so I'm telling you now: You if hurt John , or screw him over in any way, someone around here's gonna hurt you real bad, okay "

"Look" the girl in the vest sighed, "John's a geek, he's never had a full-on relationship, he's into computers and games, sport. He's still like a kid in his head."

"Is it any wonder?" replied Cameron turning to look at her.

"What the hell do you mean by that?" The girl in vest stroked her arm like she had goose-bumps.

"Okay let me tell you how I see it. First there's Sarah, last summer John told me lots of stuff about her, now that's one scary woman, okay. Then there's you guys, I mean what are you, his personal body guards? John's seventeen right, is it any wonder he had to run away to spend some time with me?"

"What are you his analyst?" Angelique asked sarcastically.

"I'm not going hurt John, period." Cameron screwed up the towel and dropped it into the basket next to her feet. "Anything else?" she asked, facing up Chelsea.

"Yeah, we want to know; why are you even staying with John?"

Cameron took off her shades and pushed back her hair to display the bruise and cut that was healing on the side of her right eye. Cameron tilted her head and waited for the girls to respond. "John's the only person I can trust right now."

"Your dad did this to you? "asked Angelique.

"No," replied Cameron, "some guy I never want to run into again did 'this' to me, I didn't let him get what he wanted so he took a swipe at me with a metal bar, okay." Cameron touched her cheek like it was really tender and glanced over the girls standing in front of her, "John doesn't know any of the detail yet and I'd appreciate it if I was the one who told him".

"Police get the bastard who did it to you "?

Cameron shook her head "Police can't touch him, no one can"

"I'd beat the crap out of a guy if he tried it with me," said the girl in the Thai boxing shirt.

"Yeah, that's what I thought, but it's not that easy when it happens." Cameron swallowed and stared past the girls at the wall behind them as she waited for them to come to a decision.

The girls nodded, seeming to have reached a kind of silent accord, one declaring a partial truce on Cameron. "Okay – remember what we said about John."

"You said: House Rules apply Chelsea" Cameron suddenly locked eyes with Chelsea causing her to jolt and sit up. Cameron smiled faintly at her reaction and for a second her expression conveyed an unnerving mix of understanding and toughness. Then she suddenly brightened up. "So, my dad's come over from Palmdale to buy John lunch and bring my ID for enrolment, John's waiting for me outside," Cameron gestured to the bathroom door with a tilt of her head. As she made to move through the girls they stepped aside to let her pass.

John was still standing; arms folded with his back to the wall "You okay he asked nervously.

"Yeah, I just got the official welcoming ceremony."

"I'm sorry I saw them going in but I figured you could handle it. Did they buy the cover story?"

"I have had worse, but they bought it. You know what?" Cameron's eyes became animated with an almost childish enthusiasm as she spoke," I got pulled off this really long combat operation to be on your case, and I'm totally starving and, my 'dad's buying us lunch - So, this is what I want … Okay : one rare steak, and it's got to be about this big ," Cameron made like she was holding the sole of combat boot in her hands , and fries; I want mountains of fries, and I want a slab chocolate ice ,maybe the size of house brick ."

John lurched off the wall he'd been resting his back against. "Come on," he said, and to Cameron's surprise he gently slipped his arm through hers. "This is Esperanza; you have to settle for burgers."

"Burgers is good. Hey, John, you know I'm wearing your jeans?" Cameron asked, changing the subject. "I think maybe you left a bill in the back pocket, you might want to check it out."

Cautiously John slipped his fingers into Cameron's back pocket and felt around.

There was a piece of paper. He pulled it out. "No it's a metro ticket. " John said, holding the ticket up for her to see.

"Try again," Cameron replied with a coy smile.

"What is this, a magic act?" John asked nervously, tying to make a joke out of what she was asking him to do.

"John, okay, my ass isn't going to explode if you touch it, you know." Cameron turned her head slowly and looked at him like he was totally dumb and grinned.

"I get it." Said John slowly accepting what she wanted him to do.

John carefully reached in her pocket again and Cameron patted his hand with hers. "Leave it in there this time will you? I actually like when you do that," she said.

Cameron took a long glance back over her shoulder, when she looked forwards again she shook out her hair like she'd won a minor victory. Chelsea, Angel and the girl in the tank top were following ten paces behind them.

John's cell buzzed and he fished it out of his jacket pocket with his free hand. It was a text from Sarah. When he opened the image, it was the picture Stacey had snapped of him and Cameron outside the math class.


	5. Chapter 5

"Dance is the hidden language of the soul, " as John is about to find out .

Thanks again to everyone for reading . Your thoughtful reviews are much appreciated. Okay, there will be a few typos, but I'm going to hit the button now.

* * *

"Dex Phillips. I'm err, Cameron's dad,"Dex held out a silver-haired, knuckle- scarred hand. It was like bear's paw. When they shook hands it engulfed John's.

Dex must have been in his late fifties but he'd obviously kept in shape. He had an etching of silver stubble around the sides of his otherwise bald, big round head. He'd rolled up his shirt sleeves so anyone could make out the fading USMC tattoo on his thick forearm.

Dex didn't seem to be at ease around Cameron nor did he appear want to make eye contact with John.

There were some fries and a single burger on Cameron's plate. She sliced the meat into strips.

"Hey Cameron; burger huh ? So, what happened to that health diet you said you were going on?" Dex ventured trying to build up some banter.

Cameron pointed her fork at him "that's what I like about taking you guys out to these kinds of places. You really know how to spoil me. You got any red sauce there Dex?" she asked, scanning over him like she knew he must have grabbed a pocket full of condiments from the dispenser.

"I'll go get you some right now," replied Dex, making to get up like it was the excuse he been waiting for to get out of the way for a few minutes whilst John and Cameron ate their food together.

Cameron placed the palm of her hand flat on the top of the bench making it clear she was requesting Dex to stay put. "Actually ," I'll get the sauce." She said getting on her feet before Dex could stand up.

After Cameron got up Dex awkwardly folded his big arms together and sat back silently examining John. It was almost like he was holding a one man staring contest. John wondered if had had something growing out of his head the way the guy was looking him over.

When Cameron walked into the cafeteria Dex finally spoke in a quiet low voice. "You got to be careful what you say around her, she can hear a grenade pin drop at 100m." Dex glanced up at the sky and kept looking around. He didn't seem at all comfortable sitting around for any amount of time.

John felt like Cameron had left him minding some crazy ex Marine vet who probably wasn't suitable for being left unattended in public for any length of time. He smiled politely at Dex and carefully bit into his pizza slice.

Dex's eyes searched over the skyline and down the valley. "I grew up in LA , John right on the edge of this district over there. That's why Cameron pulled me in on this one. I haven't been back to LA in nearly twenty years."

"Has LA changed much since you went away?" asked John.

"Not for me." Dex shook his head and stared John again.

No matter were Dex rested his hands or arms he didn't seem to be able to get comfortable, finally he came out with what he was trying to say. "Er I need to talk about Cameron, she kind of asked me to do this last night on the way over here."

Dex sounded like father flustering around trying to pluck up the courage to explain the facts of life to one of his kids.

John decided to put Dex out of his distress. "It's okay, you're going to give me the man on man and tell me Cameron's way out of my league right? I understand .Dex, this is just role playing for whatever it are you guys do. I know no way in real life she'd be interested in me."

"Err, John, you got to understand here; Cameron is very, very specific in her choice of partner."

John smiled, underneath it all, he thought, the guy was soft when it came to things like this. "You trying to say I'm not her type, right Dex? That's considerate of you . Thank you. Now we got the bullshit out of the way shall we talk about something else? "

Dex shook his head and breathed out. "No that's not what I was trying to say at all. You're actually her type, and that is what worries me. Look John, we pulled everything together real quick to set this operation up. We didn't have any time to organize, normally with m…" Dex caught himself a fraction of a second before he said it " I mean err with a trained soldier like Cameron straight out of combat, before she can safely be allowed back into an civilian area she's got to be tested , go through a full program of readjustment, John she hasn't even tested out , we don't know how the hell she's going to react in some situations."

"Is she safe?"

"She'd never hurt you or your mom or go bad on anyone, and she's stable. That's all I can say."

"So what do you want me to do?" asked John, running his hand over his chin looking slightly worried.

"Treat her with understanding. Also, get this; Cameron's still cut up over this guy. He got married recently. So you going to be dealing with that as well. Oh she won't show anything, she'll make like she's bulletproof all over, but when you get to know some more, you'll realize she's not . She's more like… err any other normal woman I guess". Dex glanced over John's shoulder ." John, let's shut up about this now, she's coming out the door."

"Hi you guys were bonding there?" Cameron asked when she sat down again.

" Dex was saying he grew up in LA and it hasn't changed much in the last twenty years." John smoothly replied .

"That's right" said Dex, "good to be back in LA Cameron".

"Is it?" she replied scanning him.

The rest of the meal passed in silence. John nibbled at his pizza watching Cameron eat. She meticulously sliced her burger into neat strips and dipped them into the red sauce at the edge of her plate. She ate quickly and when she' finished Dex saw his exit and made to get up, and leave. "Well, I got all your things you requested here , Cameron " he said , hoisting up a new black day sack. When Dex lifted the sack in the air Cameron almost snatched it out of his hands . She immediately stood up and pulled the straps over her shoulders .

Before she walked off , Dex glanced at John. "Cameron just to be clear, this is what you wanted , right ?" He asked.

"Yes. This is what I wanted . Call me," she said putting her arm across the small John's back, piloting him away from the bench. After they'd gone a few paces she slipped her hand into John's.

John breathed in, deliberating whether he should close his fingers around hers.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

"l think just got your welcome committee back there."

"Well, earlier, I ran into your 'committee' in the restroom, remember? I guess that makes us even huh." Cameron's eyes searched his and she looked down at her hand. "I only want you to take me to the dance studio. You don't have to sit around and watch me or do anything boring like that, you can call back and later pick me up. It's not like were going to be joined at hip for the next two weeks. "

John took a deep breath and wrapped his fingers around hers so they interlocked. Dance is in that building over there."

* * *

It was an empty classroom adjacent to the dance studio. They could hear what was going on in the studio through the adjoining wall. There was the muted sound of loud techno music and dancers feet rhythmically pounded on the wooden floor.

Cameron flopped into a chair and folded her arms. "This is so much bullshit," she said glaring out of the classroom window, appearing extremely vexed

There was a life-size plastic anatomical skeleton hanging from its stand next to where she was sitting .Cameron examined it and scowled" So tell me, what you got to grin about today Mr. bonehead, huh?" she said poking it in its ribs so it swung around a little.

Earlier John had made his way over to a shelf library books and he'd begun picking through the dust jackets."Cameron I'm sorry, I never looked into Dance before. At least now we now know the class gets totally oversubscribed. Earn some credits, put your name down early as you can you can, say Monday, Tuesday and you'll get in next week. "

"It can't actually believe this happened: Stacey Hines; walked straight in past me whilst I was waiting to see if I had a place" – "You got to sing up early Cameron .John should have told you . Mind if I take another pic. of you? "Cameron said, holding out an imaginary cell in front of her, imitating Stacey's, voice." My guy's are going to be on double time clearing her blog up." Cameron grumbled.

"Hey, you read this? It's about ballet," John held up a copy of Black Swan trying to get Cameron to brighten up and divert her from her train of thought.

"Probably," Cameron replied without even bothering to look at the book he was holding up. In the studio the track changed. The next had a more rapid techno beat. "Right that's it" Cameron said and she got up and started moving desks. When she'd made a space more or less the the size of a boxing ring she opened up her day sack pulled out a black bag and peered inside. "At least they me got my size, four guys out shopping in LA, must have been be some kind of random ," Cameron muttered.

She pulled a black leotard and a pair of ballet shoes out of the bag and laid them on a table. Without any warning she began stripping down to her underwear, she seemed completely uninhibited, like John wasn't in the room,

John got a good view of her back , She had a dancer's sinew and muscle He saw the way her neck and shoulders became taught when she reached to pick up her leotard she got swiftly dressed and after she'd pulled on her shoes she stood up and stretched her arm out in front of her opening her fingers like she was letting go of something, perhaps she was imaging it was a bird or an insect from she was releasing from her hand .

"You can keeping reading that book if you want Resse," she called to him without turning around.

John pretended to be engrossed in his paperback. But honestly? He couldn't take his eyes off her.

Without any warning Cameron spread out her arms like they were wings. She crouched down and leapt sideways like skier setting off weaving down a slalom. Her arms, hands and fingers stretched out in the opposite direction to counterbalance . When Cameron reached the edge of the desks she stopped dead still for a moment , then she raised her hands like she was blocking in front of her. Then snatching , perhaps rapidly plucking invisible bullets out of the air , dropping them onto the classroom floor like they were crushed flower heads. Cameron turned her face to the wall where the music was sounding though and it was as if her whole body was making an offering to the music. With out any warning her hands suddenly flew up like she'd actually been in hit across her face and she pulled away collapsing like a weight of water, flowing down onto the classroom floor.

The muted techno-dance music pounded reaching its crescendo. Cameron's voice brought John back down to earth." Okay I'm going to add some moves to that routine. I'll need another track to dance it out to properly, but this'll do for now "

Cameron got up off the floor to resume her starting position. It was like she had no idea what she'd just done. She'd transfixed him like she'd nailed his brain to a plank of timber. John had never seen anything like it in his life before. It had all happened so fast .In movement Cameron had appeared weightless, as if she was made of pure light, shadows and flowing darkness.

"Hey, Reese, like hello…." she asked frowning at him.

"Where did you… where you even learn to do that?" John replied slowly standing up in amazement.

She made like it meant nothing." I taught myself, it's about whatever I feel at the time. Look Reese, I need to ask you a favour. I need a hand here if you're not actually reading anything."

"Hold me like this," she said quickly, stepping back into his arms. "Hands go here above my hips "

John cautiously placed his hands to the sides of her body. Cameron considered what she was going to do for a moment then she nodded her head like she'd reached a decision. "Okay, instead of me hitting the deck this time I'm going to throw some spins. You stand here, I'm going to slow it down before I get back to you and you're going to catch me, exactly where your hands are now .You got that? Good. " She reached around and patted him on his side.

Cameron concentrated for a second then launched back into her routine. This time, instead of falling to the floor at the end, she pulled back from the strike then slowly and remorselessly she turned her head to face her imaginary opponent, everything in her expression was fierce and defiant, she was going to fight whoever or whatever it was . For a second back there, and John thought he must have imagined it , her eyes seemed to have faintly glowed red, then she snapped out of it and almost faster than John could follow she span like a martial artist leaping from left to right foot, turning full circles in the air, her fingertips brushing down to the floor when she landed . Within seconds she was back in his hands again and she fell letting her body rest into his arms so he had to support her. In balletic style she ran her hand quickly, lightly over his face and down his cheek, and then she lay gazing up at John like she'd died in his arms.

John stared down at Cameron not daring to move, or breathe. After a few seconds she twitched her nose and gentle smile curled in the corners of her lips and her body shook with laughter. "Want to try this?" she said , moving her mouth closer in to his. The track ended in the dance room. John momentarily glanced up… and when he did his heart stopped dead for three full beats. - His mom was outside. She'd been peering in at them through the small wired safety glass panel in the door. The door opened and Sarah walked into the room. It sounded as if she was deliberately striking the heels of her shoes on the wooden boards as she crossed the floor towards them.

John and Cameron separated quickly. Cameron went over to the table she'd laid the clothes out and began pulling the t-shirt on, she didn't even look at Sarah as she got dressed.

John tried to intercept his mom, "Mom, this is totally not what you think, we were dancing. "

Sarah side-stepped John and stood with her arms folded watching Cameron as she was pulling up John's jeans. Cameron was bending over and didn't look up at Sarah . Cameron carried on fastening up the clothing in silence. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment

"So, what's your story? Maybe you can start with telling me why you are wearing my son's clothes", Sarah asked.


	6. Chapter 6

_Starcrossed seems to have turned into an experiment to see if I can carry a story mainly on dialogue and small scale interactions. Have you noticed there's like thousands of words and we haven't got through a full day yet? What do feel about this pace as readers?_

_ I'll will get some action going soon .John Cameron, Darcy ( an overweight dog) and some of John's friends are going to go out Scooby Dooing later tonight and that will be in the next chapter._

_Okay, who wants John to come close but never really find out who and what Cameron is, and John gets to have the most intense two weeks ever but is totally heartbroken for the rest of his life when she goes back where she came from? No one I guess:)_

_But... the downside of option B, John's got to face up to JD if she stays around._

_What call would you make: Cameron stays/goes, and which option would you most like to read? _

_Thanks again for your reviews and following this story, they really help me write and I get a buzz reading that someone can even be bothered to think about let alone respond to my writing. So thanks again._

* * *

Sarah sat on a desk and folded her arms waiting for Cameron to finish getting dressed. She ignored John and was grinding her teeth together, in the way she did she did when trying to reach a decision. Cameron zipped up her jacket and was standing with her sack on her shoulders waiting for Sarah to say or do something. Sarah carried on thinking. "Like I haven't got enough without this," she said eventually, speaking to no one in particular.

Sarah took another long look at Cameron . She stood up and snatched the bunch of keys shed been holding like she was catching them out of the air. "Okay come on." Sarah put her hands in her jacket pockets and walked off without taking a second glance back at John and Cameron, or saying another word.

Sarah was out heading down hallway and Cameron didn't look convinced. "It's okay that was Mom's way of saying 'yes'. Trust me, she'll chill later. She's got a lot going on right now,"John said taking hold of Cameron's arm.

They caught up with Sarah at the edge of a cordoned-off section of hallway. The roof had leaked overnight in the storm, and part of the ceiling collapsed under the weight of the water when it had soaked up the heavy rain. Broken plaster and sodden insulation was scattered all over the new flooring and wet wires were hanging down from what had been the light sockets. Sarah kicked a large piece of wet ceiling board back under the danger tape with the tip of her boot.

John didn't let go of Cameron's arm and they came up and stood by to her. She turned her head , watching them together before returning her attention to the mess on the floor in front of her. "You know this hallway renovation; it cost thirty seven thousand dollars, eight months ago. Contractors couldn't even get the damn roof right. I'm going to have serious words with those guys on Monday morning. "

John had been about to say you don't even work here anymore, but Sarah gave the plaster one last kick and said,"It can wait, let's go."

They walked in a line towards the exit, John was not wanting to look like he and his new girlfriend were trailing behind, following Sarah on the warpath around her old school so he made sure they kept up with her . He hoped they'd get her out of the building before she spotted anything else that would set her off.

All was going well and they must have been less than 20 meters from the exit doors when a group of male students came out of the sports block. It was Friday and they were in high spirits and they were pushing and jostling, maybe a bit louder than they should in a school, maybe a little euphoric on the promise of a Friday night and the weekend that lay ahead for them.

When they saw Sarah hey stopped dead in their tracks like prisoners caught in the searchlight with spades in their hands trying to dig their way out under the wire. Sarah's voice was loaded with dangerous calm. "Mr Milton Wallis."

"Oh Hi Miss Reese. Hi John , Hey..." Wallis broke open a big, gold- toothed smile at Cameron, as if she was the last girl he'd expect to find on the end of John's arm, which was actually his way of complimenting them both.

"Wallis, you still owe me essay on Dante's Inferno, from last April, remember?" Sarah said stepping up to him.

"Yeah, but I got into trouble back then and you're not here anymore Sarah , so I didn't get around to it, didn't think you still wanted it ." Wallis replied, trying to work out if she was being serious and at the same time trying not to make any more eyes at Cameron.

"You got my mail, a debt's a debt: I collect." Sarah said menacingly rattling the bunch of keys in her pocket. "I'm expecting you next year at UCLA. You don't let me down." Before he could step back Sarah hugged him briefly and grinned, "Just don't screw me around okay Milton."

"You two, come on, let's move," Sarah called to John and Cameron.

"Er, see you guys later. This is Cameron," said John rather proudly.

"Man, rather you than me right now, but she's worth it," one of the group standing behind Wallis whispered , "Nice to meet you Cameron, "another said , smiling at the couple approvingly.

The SUV was parked in what had been Sarah's space in the lot when she'd taught at Esperanza. As they approached it rocked . A black German Sheppard dog had its face up to the rear windshield . It was barking and gnawing against the smeared, steamed-up glass, like it was trying to smash through it with his teeth and at get at passers-by.

Cameron slowed up, she seemed nervous. "Why did you bring Darcy along?" asked John.

"Mr Berry can't give him enough 's overweight so I'm taking him out jogging, picked him up on the way over, he's staying for two weeks as a trial."

"What's the matter with Mr. Berry?"

"Heart valves leaking. He's waiting for a call from Cardiac." Sarah made Mr. berry's condition sound everyday and insignificant, like Sarah's older colleague was waiting for a call from the garage for the news his car needed an oil change or a new battery.

"You're taking up jogging again mom?" John asked .

"Yep," she replied like it was something that didn't, or more specifically shouldn't need questioning. Sarah opened the back door SUV and physically blocked Darcy from bounding out into the school parking lot. "Shut the hell up and sit down over there," she said firmly, pushing the dog over to the far side of the back seats with her hands.

"You okay with dogs?" asked Sarah holding the door open for Cameron, closely watching for her reaction. John reluctantly climbed in the front.

"I'm fine," Cameron replied eyeing Darcy like she meant business and climbed in. Sarah shut the door and Cameron rested her sack on her lap. She reached out her hand and grabbed the dog firmly by its lead holding it close to its collar. When Darcy didn't growl or snarl back at her she eased her grip and stroked the side of its neck and head, reassuringly, gradually increasing the pressure of her fingertips as she'd learned to do with Resistance attack dogs.

Sarah eased the SUV out of the School lot and headed through the downtown traffic towards the freeway. Darcy sat up in the rear seat next to Cameron watching the road over Sarah's shoulder, swaying into the SUV's turns and stops like he was uncomfortably perched on a surfboard.

They'd driven in silence until they'd joined the main northbound carriageway .Sarah glanced back at Cameron through the rear view, "I got to ask: You bringing trouble to my home?"

"No," Cameron replied.

"So why didn't you go to the police?"

"They wouldn't do anything. He's part of a bike club ,I actually hit him with a piece of rebar and I ran off, it's not like I injured him real bad or anything, he didn't get what wanted from me , so it's kind of evens. My dad's working out of town and I don't want to be on my own right now."

"What were you even doing in that bar?" Sarah asked.

"I got a job after college picking up glasses, washing them. It was cash and the owner didn't ask any questions."

"Are we talking about The Snakes bike club here?"

"He's with some riders who know them. Honestly, I though he was going to give me a lift home, he's about the same age as my dad, so I thought I'd be safe."

Sarah sighed, "Cameron, you know I got an ex who lives out that way, I wonder if he's ever run into these guys?"

"Mom John shook his head, "no way, you're not bringing him into this period. You don't mention a word about this to him, ever."

Sarah twisted around in her seat. For second her attention was almost dangerously taken away the road. "John, did you talk him into letting you go into a biker's bar? If I thought for a moment he allowed you do to do stuff that, you know I'd kill that guy. So, is that where you met Cameron?"

"No," protested John," I would never talk him into doing anything like that ever. I got more respect for him, alright."

"What's that supposed to mean exactly?"

"Like you don't know already," John fired back at her.

Cameron coughed like she was clearing her throat, "Actually I met John played a few games chess, started PM-ing on the forum. I invited him over. I mean that is normal for kids our age to do isn't it? I'm sorry; I thought you knew where John was, Sarah."

"Cameron ,I didn't have a clue where John was. It's like there's some conspiracy, some big wall of silence between these two when John and my ex get together. Think I don't know when they go out smoke dope and shoot up cactus in the desert. "

"Mom, there's no conspiracy. I'm eighteen in two weeks time, okay , I needed some space, somewhere to think , and we don't shoot guns when we get together okay. "

"Anyway , wadya mean by 'space' exactly John?" said sarah changing the subject.

John put his hand to his forehead and ran his hand back through his hair. "You want a list? Okay: I move out my room for Chelsea and her sister. Then we got Nathan, then Becky. We got everyone else's kids living with us, made 'space' for them when I was growing up, so, now I want space of my own."

Sarah took one hand off wheel and pushed out her palm towards him like she was shoving the idea of something away, and wasn't intending to go over old ground again. She glanced back at Cameron again for as long as she dared take her eyes off the road. "What about your mom, what does she think about you staying over?"

Cameron was watching the overhead freeway sign passing by out the windshield. Maybe it was the complex pattern interrelated events humans clumsily bundled together and called 'fate'. Maybe it wasn't part of any pattern at all, but that sign had read 'Palmdale 8 Miles', exactly when Sarah asked the question.

"She died when I was seven, just been me and my dad since," replied Cameron quietly.

"What about you dad is he okay with you being over here?"Sarah tried not to show she'd been taken off guard by what Cameron had just said attempting carry on as if she'd said nothing out of the ordinary. It was how Cameron said it that had got her , it had been so damn 'succinct', pure, understated, without any attempt to ploy for Sarah's sympathy.

"Sure he is, he brought my bag over this morning, and he left some cash for the groceries, that's if you agree, and I got my last wages, that's nearly two hundred dollars here, I think. Is that enough?" said Cameron lifting up her bag by the strap to show Sarah where the money was.

Now the situation had been properly explained Sarah's anger was deflating and the stress level was dropping inside the SUV like it was hissing and bubbling out of the back of the car through an invisible valve. She'd finalized her decision. In fact, Sarah had arrived at it in the classroom but hadn't wanted to be seen to loose face. This seemed the right moment. "Cameron, maybe keep, say, half that cash and replace some of your clothes that got wrecked last night with it, I got a better a leather than that of John's if you want it, it's kind of your size, and I don't wear it and it'd suit you more than me, and hold onto those boots of mine whilst you're staying with us, I got another pair. Like why did you even hitch over in that storm in the middle of last night? "

"It wasn't raining when I set out, and I wanted to be with John, "Cameron replied like she was done talking about things, for now.

"John," Sarah quieting to an apologetic tone, knowing he'd guess what she was about to ask. "You okay with moving back into the spare? You can share my bathroom. "

John stared out the windshield away from Sarah . "Actually no, I'm going to take my bag and sleep on the couch in my room. Cameron can have the bed. I'm eighteen in two weeks time, right, I'm not going in the spare room, it's like a packing crate, my legs don't stretch the full length of the bed, and I'm not sleeping downstairs with Darcy trying to get in with me a every half hour, and if he gets stressed or indigestion, I'm going to get gassed, and even if Darcy wasn't here and the spare was twice a sbig, that's not what I'm doing, okay."

There was silence. John second guessed what his mom was thinking. "You're going to have to trust us on that. You know you have just made a lot of judgemental assumptions about me and especially Cameron, and even if they were well founded, actually they are not yours to make or say, are they?"

Sarah held her hand up like she was admitting to being in the wrong and checked the rear view to make sure Cameron knew she was involved in the conversation, and she was apologising. "Sure , I'm sorry , but first thing back in the house, we're going to clear out your room , I'm not having Cameron sleep in that mess of yours up there, you even noticed it recently."

"You're right, John's room's a trash tip and I'd like to help clean it," said Cameron.

* * *

Sarah had taken Darcy inside and shut him in the conservatory at the rear the house. They could hear him barking in protest. John and Cameron stood with their backs to the SUV and waited around on the drive to talk before going in.

"Cameron, I really sorry about my mom, and I had no idea she was picking Darcy up. Like, she does this kind of stuff, three years and suddenly decides she's starting up running again."

"Hey John, you ever realized people say most' the stuff they really mean without words, they kind of demonstrate what they are doing."

"Why?"

"Because bullshit walks, most' the time."

"What do you mean?"

"Reese, if we were really going out together , what's your mom saying if she telling you she's starting up running again, out for an maybe hour , you know regularly at night, three four times a week, leaving us with the house to ourselves?"

"Oh, right, I didn't think," said John embarrassed.

"Maybe you should think, before you kick off at her next time okay. Oh, and don't worry, Darcy's never going to make the grade as an attack dog. Actually he's soft as crap and seriously needs to loose weight .Hey," she said turning to John, "Reese, big thanks for what you did back there, how you came over about us; it was … totally convincing," Cameron nodded approvingly and put her arm though his and studied his face. She had this way of making him feel like she actually took pleasure from being with and looking at him and John tried not to let her know he enjoyed the feeling when she was near, like this.

"What I said about my room, and needing space; I wasn't acting then," said John. He was staring at his bedroom. Sarah had got up there and flung open the windows; she'd already fired up the vacuum cleaner and was attacking the dust on the ledges.

"Better get cleaning with your mom .John you stay down here maybe find some garage mess to tidy up and chill - I owe you one okay. "Cameron winked and slapped John on the side of his arm. She hitched her day sack over her shoulders and went ahead of him into the house.

John stood next to the SUV watching her walk away. Cameron deliberately came alive in movement under his gaze, maybe she sensed he was looking and it was something she did especially for him, at least it felt like it to him. "Reese," she called over her shoulder, "some of those things I said, I wasn't acting either, I got feelings too."


	7. Chapter 7

_Okay, on with the story . Fischer's flat gets raided by Cameron's team. Dex finds a couple and a kid down in the basement. He assumes they're tunnel rats sent back from Camp Gaza '29._

_Is this , like, too audacious to work into a TSCC plot line? Because I got to thinking, you know how thorough machines are when they put their minds to problem solving, sometimes they come up with solutions that are so way out of the box, we'd never second guess what they were doing._

_Without googling - anyone recognize the language? I checked, this is the actual phonetic pronunciation , but it doesn't come up in a direct search if you cut and paste._

_I hope you enjoy reading and you spend a few moments to drop in a review- if you figure it out please just say I've figured it out, don't __blurt what you figured please in the review._

* * *

Marie Callaghan eased the Mercedes station wagon into an empty space two ranks behind Fischer. She watched him getting out of his SUV and walking over to a line of trolleys outside the 24hr mart. Marie was certain Fischer had no idea she'd been tailing him since he left his home. When he went in thought the doors into the mart Marie called up Dex on her cell. "He's gone in the 24 Mart at Pioneer Mall. I got still eyeball .Looks like he's stocking up for the weekend. I figure you got at least 40 minutes including the drive back home. "

Dex grunted 'kay", in her ear and ended the call.

Marie unbuckled her seat belt and made herself more comfortable . As she waited, out of habit her hand trailed up for the chain and little silver crucifix she'd worn around her neck since before JD . She normally played it around in her fingers when she was thinking through a problem. She realized the crucifix wasn't there, it existed twenty two years in the future, in an alternative universe. This kind of thing really screwed with your head if you tried to contemplate it too much.

Marie pulled a pack of Camel-Lites out of her Jacket. 'What the hell," she said to herself and broke open the cellophane wrap. After all,Marie reasoned she was only back in LA for another thirteen days.

Marie hadn't smoked for twenty years and she knew she'd have to quit again the moment she got 'home'. Nobody would know. She wound down the shield and exhaled a plume of silver-blue tobacco smoke out into the warm Los Angeles night air.

Thinking about things, it seemed to Marie as if a powerful benign intelligence could have looked down on the future ash and ruins of LA and, treating it like a cosmic-scale puzzle, decided to fix up every single atom seamlessly as it has been, perfectly fitting them back together in their original location in time and space, breathing life back into what had been dead and gone for so long, and, none of these people pushing their trolleys, loading up their SUV's or going about their daily lives and business out in the lot in front of the mall , had the faintest notion what had happened, or was going to. Like she'd realized, making human sense of time travel was difficult.

* * *

It had taken Hitchens one and a half minutes to pick the lock on Fischer's front door and disable his security system. Dex gazed on approvingly . That was pretty rapid going even for an ex-tunnel rat.

Fischer's own nothing more than needed. Rooms were sparse, organized ,clean and nothing seemed out of place. In the kitchen there was a freezer, a sink and drainer ,a table and a couple of storage units for food. There was half a pack of bottled water on the table but nothing else, no homely touches like bowl of fruit or a tablecloth. Nothing unusual for a single man .The only slight anomaly downstairs was a solid hardwood fire door. It had been recently fitted .It was double bolted from their side of the kitchen . It led to the stairs to the basement.

"It's not going to be up here is it ?" Dex said going over to the new door. "Any TDE's got to weigh at least two and a half tons. Dex drew back the bolts ,carefully pushed open the door a crack and peered through , checking for wires and booby traps. The lights in the basement were on. To Dex's complete surprise young girl was waiting at the bottom of the wooden steps. She was holding an infant in her arms. She couldn't have been much older than sixteen . Both she and the child were draped in dirty bed sheets. When the girl realized it wasn't Fischer peering through the gap at the top of the stairs, a look of terror spread across her face and she sprinted out of sight back to the back of the basement room.

Dex shut the door to. "There's people down there ."

"Who?"

"I don't know yet . Looked like just a kid, girl with a baby. I'm figuring they're Fischer's lab rats , probably POW test subjects , fits his typical MO, that was one of the deals the Greys cut with their own : Never use your own side for experiments ,always use captured Resistance."

"What we going to do with them? They've seen us."

It didn't take Dex long to come up with the plan. "Okay, we make it look they broke themselves out of here . It'll put extra pressure on Fischer when he gets back and finds out his 'specimens' gone walkabout , and we'll watch what the bastard does next . Okay. One … two.. three..."

When Dex opened the door again instead of the girl a young man , wrapped in old bedding was waiting for them . He'd ripped a piece of 2x3 timber off a pallet and held it like a club "Resistance " said Dex holding up his forearm to show the young man the Century barcode that had been torched into his wrist back in '26.

The young man swallowed, maybe he didn't understand . He moved his hips side to side as if he were winding up for a baseball shot.

Dex could read the kid; he wasn't a soldier, everything in his eyes told Dex the last thing on earth he actually wanted to do was take a swing at him . He was only protecting his family. Dex very walked calmly down the steps towards him.

"Oymwhrd? " the young man demanded before Dex reached the bottom of the wooden staircase

"Oymwhrd!" his partner repeated grabbing hold of the child more tightly in her arms. When Dex reached the bottom of the stairs she began yelling, it was angry and guttural , and she was obviously very afraid ."jwerkad quatto !" She glared over her baby's shoulder at Dex like a cornered animal. The young man gestured for her to keep quiet and locked his eyes back on Dex, From the way he was holding the timber Dex could make out the barcode on his wrist. It was fresh, looked like it had been burned in yesterday . Clots of sweat beaded the young man's forehead

Dex took a deep easy breath and kept his hands out in front of him. Over the years he'd processed many ex POW's from different continents and knew exactly what he was doing. When Dex had been on POW transport , he'd learned , it doesn't matter what you say, it's how you say it: Humans talk to animals and they kind of understand us, but humans can figure more or less what other humans say and mean from anyplace, any language in the world , if you use the right voice.

" Hitch go back up top , grab the bottled water on the table for these guys please," Dex said keeping the tone of his voice even ; neither too loud nor too soft.

Dex physically towered over the young man who was shaking with the adrenaline rush "Okay," Dex said calmly," Son I know you're one brave motherf-r , but you put that stick down before someone gets hurt. I'm not trying to hurt you , or your lady or your kid , understand?" Dex held out his own laser tattoo for him to see " Century '27/, read it if you want" Dex pointed to his chest "Lieutenant, U.S.A.R Marine Corp."

The child had woken up , it was grizzling and building up steam for bawling out loud . The girl and the child were backed up against the far wall of the basement. She was doing her best to keep it calm. Apart from wooden pallets, a bucket, the pile of bedding the basement was empty . Two naked light bulbs hung from the joists above. Even this was pretty basic even for one of Fischer's holding areas, Dex thought.

Dex returned his attention to the young man. He had a wispy beard , long hair, looked like what his dad used to call a 'goddamn hippy'. "Will you put that goddamn stick down son?" Dex said motioning with his hand trying to get the kid to understand. If he didn't do something soon either the kid was going to pop and take a swing or Dex was going to have to put him down.

"Yossi – _Ossakaro!"_ " the girl shouted .

The young man let out a yell of frustration and hurled the piece of timber aside . It bounced off the basement wall landing at Dex's feet .Dex didn't budge a muscle. The young guy went over and put his arms protectively around the woman and child shielding them with his body.

Hitchens placed the water on the floor and stood back, tying to appear as friendly and non-threatening as he could, (Colonel Philips had mentioned she didn't mind personally, but maybe more 'friendly' was something Hitchens could work on towards his own species, huh?.)

Dex crouched down and picked a long stright splinter of wood from the side of one of the pallets. He crouched and drew a map in the dirt on the basement floor."Okay Haifa ,Jaffa, Jerusalem, Gaza.." Dex spoke out the names of the Palestinian -Israeli towns and cities as he was drawing the map.

The couple exchanged glances. Dex could tell the girl was very afraid , but at the same time she was defiant . Small , lean, she had dark quick intelligent eyes under her long black hair and she was weighing him up. She'd probably kill him if she had half a chance. She was the real fighter out of the couple . After a few moments of glaring at him full intensity she began speaking slowly , picking carefully over the vowels. It was a harsh , guttural language but she spoke with the clear voice of a woman who was little more than a child herself, and Dex noticed she had a kind of confidence about herself..."Au-Ori-Shlem? " she asked pointing at the map,

"Jerusalem" replied Dex using the splinter to indicate a dot he'd poked in the dirt.

She passed the child to over the young man , walked over and crouched down on the opposite side of the map to Dex. Her feet were cut up , dirty like she'd been walking for miles before she'd been picked up by Grey. When she caught Dex examining her, her eyebrows came together and a frown wrinkled in her forehead above the 'V.' She was scowling at him . B'BeYYLKen? She demanded pointing to the map

"I don't know what you mean," replied Dex.

"BiYHuddDmen," The girl pointed to herself and then to an area near Jerusalem on the map. She searched Dex's face for understanding and repeated the word again . Then she asked for Dex's splinter of wood and drew a line south to tip of the map, "B'mystrem" … Assyraa … Oyhwhrd …" the girl made like she was holding a heavy combat knife and jabbed the air in front of her with the imaginary blade.

"Not,_ that's_ Syria "– Dex said ,pointing to the Northern part of the map "– where you're showing me to the south that is The Sinai , further that's Egypt ."

"Biyhudd , Assryaa," the girl shook her head , repeated the words firmly and locked eyes with him. There was something in her bearing and confidence Dex couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Okaay let's try something else, start again Dex sighed and showed her the laser tattoo ," USA Resistance "

Oab EeTsYaYu,eHshe" said pointing to her laser brand.

Dex's knees were aching and he stood up for a moment. The girl continued to remain crouched and she kept one eye on him whilst she studied the dirt map on the floor. It was like she was memorizing it.

"What language is she speaking ?" Asked Hitchens

"Arabic, or Hebrew, or a mix. They're Palestinian Resistance, ex tunnel rat recruits. You get loads of dialectical variations, sometimes down to whatever damn tunnel systems they were held up in."

"How you know all this lieutenant ?"

" I was on The Ulysses. Alliance Marines liberated Haifa , we pushed on down through Gaza. Metal were cutting our people up in there, harvesting them for troop feed, organics, fertilizer and fuel, all that kind of shit , that's why Connor nuked New Babylon, it was in retaliation. Do me a favour, don't ever ask me about Gaza again, never"

"They could be implanted," Hitchens said glancing over the young couple and their child.

"Could be, but this says they're not." Dex held out his cell. The Engineer had modified it to sweep for implants and trackers.

The young woman stood up and took the infant back into her arms off the young man. Dex got a good look at him. He was sweaty fevered, too tired to really do anything more than grizzle into the girl's shoulder and feebly hold his arms out in protest and complaint Dex knew when dehydration was taking a grip. He gave the girl a long hard look before he spoke. "Okay I'm getting you medical. Lady I seen all this before, too many times. Your kid's not going to make it through the night if you don't come with us now."

He turned to the young man," what you say son, going to make the right decision save your kid's life?" Dex pointed back to the flight of stairs and the open door. Dex could read it in him, he wanted to make choice.

"Dex ... Dex," said slowly reaching out his hand. The kid searched the girl's face for an indication of what she thought he should do.

She swallowed and nodded. "AeTHaYMaN "she said, speaking firmly with a great deal of bearing and 'finality'.

The young man reached out and gratefully grabbed hold of Dee's hand and pointed to his chest. "Yossi," he said indicating his name. Yossi's entire expression showed he was utterly relieved he'd come to the decision to trust Dex and Hitchens , it was like a heavy load had been lifted off him.

"Myariam" –young woman said..

Hitch coughed before he told them his name "Hitchens ," he sort of mumbled.

"YiCheers? "She repeated frowning at him.

"Hitch" he said, just call me "Hitch."

"Stay here with Hitch," Dex held up his arm to indicate they stayed put in the basement until he'd finished upstairs.

Dex marched up the steps and with both hands he grabbed hold of the top of the open fire door at its point of maximum leverage . He looked like a bear on a rampage mission. He yanked down on the edge of door with his full eighteen stones, his face contorted and he grunted like weigh lifter pushing maximum bar. After few seconds the door lost the battle , screws holding its frame wrenched out of the wall , wood splintered and the door hung down at angle before detaching itself altogether and dropping onto the platform at the top of the steps . Dex smashed the bolts off with the heel of his boot.

"That'll get Fischer thinking," Dex said, gasping for breath.

For good measure Dex went through Fischer's house and ransacked it. He grabbed a bundle of clothing from Fischer's bedroom room , pocketed the handful of dollar and cent coins Fischer kept in a drawer next to his bed. Then Dex started systematically wrecking the place to make it look like the couple had turned it over on their way out.

When he'd finished Dex waited to catch his breath again, he winced at the slight pain in his chest . When his breathing was back to normal he called up Colonel Phillips on his cell .

"Guess what Mam? " Dex said rather pleased with himself ," we got three ex POW , Skynet 'lab rats' , Gaza '29 , we're bringing them out now. "

"Fischer's going to think they broke themselves out . We got room for them back at our place. Callaghan can watch who and where Fischer runs to when he finds out they've gone walkabout."

"Well, I got three first names for you ,.' Myriam', mother, she's 'bout sixteen .'Yossi' , father say seventeen/eighteen , two- three month old kid , he's called Yesu . Mother and child suffering dehydration – I'm calling in at the drug store on the way back, pick up wipes diapers, rehydration salts, .. Err mam, I don't suppose you know anything about baby food?

Cameron clearly didn't

"Yeah, baby's name, I think when she said it sounded like 'Meesau' , 'Eseau'. I don't Know, she kept saying the word 'oymwrd'. No I didn't recognize the dialect."

It went quiet on the end of the line , for a couple of seconds before she said she didn't recognize the word.

"Sure… see you in say thirty minutes from now?"

Hitchens brought the couple and child up into the kitchen . Dex indicated they get changed into whatever they could find that fitted in the bundle he'd dumped on the table . It quickly became obvious the young couple were treating the pile of clothing as a complete puzzle .

"Hey ,"said Hitch , those are buttons:, I'll show you , ," he ,said fastening up the checker shirt Yossi had pulled over his arms . Mryiam she trying to work out what the green nylon anorak actually was .

"Is it possible they've never seen Western clothing?" asked Hitch.

"It's possible, maybe . We'll find out ,Colonel's coming over to interview them, our place, thirty minutes."

Hitchens caught the expression on Dex's face. He looked worried. "What's up?" Hitch asked.

"Tell you the truth, , it's the Metal, if I didn't know her better , I'd say she sounded … spooked," replied Dex shaking his head.

"_She_ sounded spooked?" replied Hitch looking slightly worried.

Myriam handed the child over to Yossi and was trying to pull on the green anorak-" No you got to wear something under it, like this," said Hitchens holding up a pair of sports pants and a dark blue T-shirt ," look, Myriam it doesn't matter , anything that fits, just get it on , we got to leave now. Look: just get dressed will ya."

"Jeez this is what it must be like having kids ,"Hitch said turning back to Dex.

Dex's cell rang, it was Marie . She was warning them Fischer was exiting the 24-hour mart. It really was time for them go.

* * *

.John had dozed off in his sleeping bag on the couch. He woke to find Cameron stroking the side of his cheek . Her face was near to his and she was smiling at him. There seemed to be a slight blue glow fading from her eyes.

"Shssh, your mom's asleep. Do you know anything about different brands of baby food Reese?" she asked frowning at the apparent seriousness of the question.

John shook his head . "Colonel,I know absolutely nothing about baby food, is that why you woke me up?

" Me neither, like what the hell would I know about baby food ? Reese okay why ,I'm waking you up :I didn't want you to freak out if you came to and I wasn't here. I gotta go out for a couple of hour's max., something serious I have to deal with . Reese, will you me a big favour please ?"

"What ?"asked John

"Get into that bed , make it look like I'm still around. If your mom checks on us she'll question where I've gone, but if she thinks I'm in there with you it's really unlikely she'll try to wake us up or bother us – it's not like we're doing anything is it ?.. Besides, a warm bed to come back to , it's nice. " Cameron ran her hand over his cheek again, "Reese, actually I hate leaving you on your own .I'll be back ,quick as I can . Keep the window open for me."

With that Cameron slipped over the windowsill as easily as cat climbing out and she dropped soundlessly the lawn before melting into the night.

John got into his bed. It was still warm and the pillows and sheets smelled of Cameron . He hugged the top pillow and tried to go back sleep.

_In the next installment Dex is going to screw up. Yossi, Myrriam and Esau get busted by homeland security for being illegal immigrants , someone is seriously going to have to figure out how to get them back, perhaps before colonel Phillips finds out __what's happened._


	8. Chapter 8

_ I'm going to post this chapter now. There are going to be typo's etc, but it's 99.9% cut right . This is adult and up to the edge of what I think is T rating . There's nothing direct or explicit , but rather, suggestive, and it's up to your imaginations to do the work. That is what imaginations are for, okay:) Remember, these are two AU's in collision, no one's in control anyhing can happen._

_Anyone wanting to drop in a review that says , "I like this" , or " you write Cameron different, so why?" Fine, and thanks, but if you are deep 'critters' you'll notice three POV's here , and the attempt to balance two __POV's to mid point neutral in the second section. I could use feedback to know if it works, or if maybe the shift's too much for you._

_Thanks again for reading and reviewing. _

* * *

When John got in under his quilt it didn't feel like he was in his own bed. His sheets and pillows retained Cameron's presence like an aura. The mattress was warm, still body temperature where she'd lain. There was the fading, almost stale scent of hand-soap and lemon shampoo from the morning shower. They hadn't been astringent enough to shift the deep residue of her sweat, the dirt and burned metal, deep inside her pores; the stench of the combat zone she'd stepped out of last night.

John rolled and got comfortable on his side. His hand stoked the bed sheet and he found himself imagining what it might be like to run his hand over Cameron's bare shoulder. He stopped himself, smiled and gently shook his head in the pillow at what he knew was his own naivety, but there had been a thrill, a danger and pleasure in the idea of it.

"What if Cameron actually did intend to have sex with him?" John thought. She'd given him the impression whatever her mission was,it was no more than an insignificant, almost irritating observation detail. Watching Fischer was a break from her working on aerial weapon systems, drones and helicopter gunships, and she was treating being around him in LA like a fortnight's leave. Colonel Phillips seemed to be predatory and very definite about what she wanted. Perhaps that was the only way she could be? John reasoned, potentially the CIA (or whoever these guys were) could post her anywhere in the world at short notice. John tried to imagine the kind of men she'd already gone after and nailed on previous leave: she'd mentioned she'd had an affair with a married man, hinted he was older than her, maybe in powerful role, she'd mentioned the 'politics' of the situation,- was he her last 'protection detail'? Seriously; how could he match up to guys like that?

John glanced at the open window. A light breeze billowed the curtains in over the sill and dragged them out again. "Why the hell am I even considering this," She was messing with him , to put him at ease, he thought.

Eventually the physical stress and exhaustion of the last twenty four hours won out and John closed his eyes .He eased into a deep level of sleep, lying face down on his front, his arms wrapped around Cameron's side the quilt, literally 'intoxicated' by her.

* * *

Callaghan shut the door behind her and rested her back against it letting out a deep sigh. The hallway was silent except for the tic- tock of the grandfather clock at the bottom of the stairs. She took off her jacket and hung it on the coat stand by the door. She tucked in her shirt, loosened off her shoulder holster and wearily made her way to the kitchen. Except for her boots on the tiled floor and ticking grandfather clock there wasn't another sound in the house. Dex was in the kitchen and when she opened the door he put one finger to his lips and gestured with a tilt of his head to the living area.

Callaghan had to do a double take to recheck what she'd thought seen in there. Colonel Phillips lap top was open and she'd clearly abandoned whatever work she had been trying to do. She was sitting low in her chair, one side of her t-shirt raised to her shoulder, her sports bra was lowered and she was breast feeding the infant she protectively cradled in her arms. It was wearing nothing except a light blue snug fit diaper. She looked utterly peaceful and content with the world. She signalled for Callaghan to come over to her. Callaghan quietly down sat at the opposite side of the table, still unsure to make of the situation "Who is he, she?" Callaghan asked.

"It's a 'he'. Name's Esau. Dex and Hitch pulled him and a couple kids out of Fischer's basement .Middle East Resistance, '29. Mom and dad are sleeping through there. Mom's completely dehydrated, she can't feed. We got a saline into her. Estimate they'd been awake at least 72 hours, they started talking crazy shit, so we slipped them a sedative, and they'll make more sense in the morning." Phillips fingers gently curled around the crown of the child's head and Callaghan couldn't help thinking how easy it would be for the machine to push them through his soft skull as easy if it was wet cardboard.

If Phillip's picked up Callaghan's discomfort she ignored it. – "I don't trust compound, I need to research compound some more, could be too rich if he's not used to it." Phillips said, like she was making ordinary domestic conversation.

Callaghan wasn't listening properly. Phillips tilted her head and appeared puzzled, "something the matter?" she asked.

Callaghan didn't really know what to say, but instinct told her honesty was the best policy."The matter? Nothing, I didn't know you could breastfeed."

The child squirmed in Phillips arms trying to get more comfortable. It was safe and utterly oblivious to anything else in the universe. Philips focused on point over Callaghan's shoulder like she was recalling a far off memory. - "Infiltrator: takes me say an hour to reconfigure my organics to feed a kid. Back in the day, wanna get in a system? One plan; snatch human young, walk right up to the front door with it. I mean who's not going to let you into their bunkers or tunnels carrying one of these? Might take week's months hanging around until you find your target. Maybe you got the wrong tunnel, but eventually you'll find out where you need to be, and you got to be able to feed the child to keep it alive. Last thing you needed on your hands was an unhealthy child, or a dead one, attracts unwanted attention."

Callaghan didn't know how to react and tried not to let the machine get a hint what she was feeling, which of course was impossible.

"First time you worked close up with self-aware metal like me right? " Phillip's said keeping her voice hushed .She'd flipped back into Marine mode, looking briefly side to side and then back at Callaghan, like Callaghan was the one who was way out of order. Phillip's eyes fixed on Callaghan and they hardened for a moment .Callaghan tried not to shiver when she drew in her next breath. Despite the protective peace around the child there was an uncomfortable atmosphere developing between them. To her relief and surprise, Cameron grinned, "Screw Terminator, actually I feel like a goddamn baby feeding machine here. Ever done this Marie? "

"Er no, I never had kids, nor anyone else's. Erm…" she left it open, an obvious question for Cameron could choose to answer.

Cameron gave her a gentle rapid fire laugh and her eyes sparkled with genuine amusement at the suggestion. "Me, kids? Not yet I haven't, be a miracle of science if I did. Hey get me a towel there please will you Dex?" She called to Dex in hushed voice almost as if she was talking to her partner. Cameron had sent Dex back out again and he appeared to have bought up half of the infant care supplies on the shelves in the drugstore.

Cameron gently eased the infant away and lowered her shirt. "Hey greedy guy that's enough." She rested the kid into her shoulder and massaged and patted his back until it burped and gurgled releasing the trapped air it had gulped down with its liquid food. "Here," Cameron got up and handed Esau to Marie. Marie took the child and held it at arms length .He had dark brown eyes, brown hair and there was a white streak dribbling from his mouth down his chin. Marie sat the child on her lap and gently wiped its mouth with the cloth Cameron had been using. He couldn't have been more than three months old and smelled of baby shampoo and … babies .She put her hand behind his neck to steady him. "He was so … utterly vulnerable." She thought

"Not like I'm getting into baking cupcakes here," said Cameron. She was pulling on an infant harness as if it was a piece of military webbing. "Kid needs some air then he'll sleep .Will you come outside for a few minutes with me please Marie? I need to talk to you."

If Marie had developed any illusions about Cameron, Cameron shattered them. There was flat lead roof over the single story kitchen. Cameron held the child carefully with one hand and reached up and grabbed the edge of the roof with the other. She pulled herself up and over the parapet in a single movement without disturbing the child. Marie grabbed hold of the lead-edge and followed her up.

Cameron lay on her back where the main shingled roof of the house angled down to meet the lead. She held Esau against her chest and cradled him in the nook of her arm. Cameron appeared fascinated by the lights of the city, the cars moving on the freeway, and the aeroplanes flying in to land and taking off from LAX. At first she didn't seem as if really wanted to talk as she waited for Marie to settle next to her.

"You know why I selected you for this mission?" Cameron asked.

"Yeah, I was LAPD before JD, good working knowledge of the city. I can drive , and there's a high probability I can talk my way into or out of a situation involving police or other authorities should the need arise. "

"And there's also Fischer," said Cameron sounding almost apologetic she'd raised the subject of Fischer.

"Yeah, and Fischer. " Replied Marie.

"You got the closest to capturing him."

"Closest? We actually had the f…, I mean, we had him." Marie deliberately stopped herself from three month old kid lying on Cameron's chest next to her was making innocent baby eyes at her.

"Wanna run it again?" Cameron asked running her hand over he kids back.

Marie had recounted the incident at least fifty times to different officers and meetings in various departments, and through repetition she'd got it down to a few neat lines of detail.

"We had him. Wouldn't talk. No idea who or what Fischer was then. Assumed he was a minor player. Left him in the holding cell with a reprogrammed 800 to soften him up. Later we pulled the 800's chip for the playback. It was making like it was going to break his little finger, left hand, got hold of his finger, it started bending it back. Machine was recording, recording his bio; Fischer's heart rate didn't elevate one beat. Fischer started talking, mumbling, it was like some religious sect-chant, numbers: They were Skynet deep code overrides, we didn't know about them 'till that moment." Marie broke off her account and put her finger to the corner of her eye to stop a tear and swallowed.

Cameron gave her a couple of seconds to regain her compose. She reached over and touched Marie's shoulder with her free hand. "What happened next?" she asked.

"Machine broke Fischer out the cell, killed two women, three men, and injured four more. It and Fischer walked straight past me, didn't open fire, didn't even aim a weapon at me."

"Why?"

"I honestly don't know, racked my brains a million times but the whole thing's never made sense. They took a vehicle from the pound drove east. Fischer headed into the Mojave. We found the Hummer run dry three k outside New Barstow. That was the last we saw of him until he turned up last night. We err; we picked the 800 sitting on the bridge of the old 215 Intersection where he'd dumped it for us to find. It was singing Do-Ri-Mi to itself."

Cameron said nothing for a while. She stroked and straightened out the infant's thin stands of hair with her fingers, like she was contemplating the best 'style' for him, however it seemed to make Marie less comfortable in her presence. Cameron carried on doing it to test her response, and she spoke softly when she came to her decision about what she needed to say.

"This is your first time working under the command of a full metal skin-job like me, right? It can't be easy for you, so let's get this straight: I'm not going to be apologising for what I am. I can understand and I get why you are deeply upset by what happened but I want you to understand, what Fischer did to your 800 he can't do to me. I'm not programmable by anyone any more, and I don't take crap anymore from anyone, okay. "

Marie nodded "Okay, out of line there, no offense intended."

"None taken."Cameron simulated taking in a deep breath, stretched her free arm and sighed and looked to change the subject the subject. "So we got to ask, why's Fischer pulled an alterative version of himself and Connor? You figured any of his motives here yet Marie?"

"You mean beyond him being a high functioning Sociopath, IQ 170 , got access to TDE, has a thing for using live actors and Metal play out roles in his extreme and self aggrandizing fantasies ?Then, the answers no. "Marie slowly shook her head to emphasize her point.

"Okay I got the start of a theory," said Cameron, "nothing definite. Let's get back to basic: How does Fischer get inside the heads of his victims, what does he do in there?"

"Pumps them full of phenol cocktail; gets them to doubt, mistrust everyone, including themselves ,convinces them they are going to do ,or get to do the absolutely most amazing thing they've always wanted, all their lives. "

"Yeah right" said Cameron, "and maybe he's got us all here in this LA thinking were playing his game, you considered that? Sociopath thinks he's screwing around with us. It's just a possibility."

"Why do say that?"

"I ran the images from your 800's CPU, 2:16:55 Fischer and the machine walk past you. You have your collar unbuttoned; your silver crucifix is visible, now you don't get many people wearing those after JD. Fischer clocked it too,_ and then_ he made his decision to walk on by. The machine panned him doing it."

"You just recalled and worked all that out?"

"Yep," said Cameron wrinkling her nose, just to show a little pride.

"Shit," Marie realized how fast Cameron was and shook her head in disbelief." Okay what's my silver cross got to do with anything?"

Cameron shuffled as if making herself more comfortable and checked the infant was falling asleep He rested the side his head like he had his ear flat to her chest, listening to her 'heartbeat'. Cameron laid her arm lengthways over him. "Like I said, those kids we pulled out of Fischer's basement were talking crazy shit, he's

ling-grammed them to them to speak and think in Aramaic , they're re-telling bible New Testament stories like a couple of religious sect jobs on meth. I'm thinking maybe they're Fischer's 2012 welcome gift for you?"

Marie shook her head in revulsion at Fischer's pleasure in mind-fucking his victims. "Fits Fischer's MO. Feel sorry for those kids, gonna take a hell of lot of deprogramming and counselling. She glanced nervously at Cameron weighing up if she should speak her mind to the machine. Thought Fischer might be gaming on you too?

"Go on?"

"Okay, just holding with your theory: Guessing from rumour you and Connor had thing right?"

"Kind of… You mean John Reese? Hey wait, Reese is definitely a home grown, AU version of Connor, no way Fischer could have faked him, certainly not all this , there's like a complete universe out here okay, just like ours, there's no way a billion machines could ever create all of this. Fischer's not a god or something, he's just a sick bastard with a handful metal pieces left on the board, and he's getting Tweeped, hopefully it's going to be me who's one that does it, and soon, okay. "

Marie sighed, looked at Cameron and briefly rubbed Cameron's forearm with her hand to let her know she genuinely wasn't holding a prejudice against her, it was the unprepared shock of the close-up with her that had taken her by surprise. "All I'm saying is be careful, metal girl, huh," she said

"I am careful. Thanks for talking… and listening" Cameron made as if she'd shivered a little. "Getting slightly chilly out here now, think I'm going to slip this little one back in bed with his mommy and daddy. I'll catch you later." Showing off her machine elegance and strength, Cameron stood up, scooped the infant tight and safely in her arms and walked forward, stepped straight off the edge of the roof and landed effortlessly in the yard.

"Stay safe" Marie called after her.

"I will," Cameron called back over her shoulder, carrying the sleeping child back into the house.

* * *

Cameron crouched on John Reese's window ledge, pushed the curtains open and scanned around and beyond his room reading minor variations in energy fields emitted from any living organism in the house. Her senses attuned to the darkness like a shark's, Sarah was in her bed and Cameron could hear Sarah's light nasal snore, and Darcy's breathing and sighing in the lean-to at the back of the house. The dog was useless but if Sarah Reese was anything like Sarah Connor, she could wake up on a hair trigger, but Sarah was about as deep as humans got in REM.

Cameron walked soundlessly over to the side of John's bed and studied him, bathed in the soft blue light of her optics. The air was thickly saturated with male hormones and pheromones the sexual chemistry released into the air from John's sleeping body.

John was lying on his side hugging the quilt .She gently prised the quilt out of his fingers and pulled it over him so it covered his back. Cameron stood up for a moment and considered what she was going to do next.

She'd learned a great deal about men from talking to her female comrades in Section 7 and she appreciated the way Corp and Section women could formulate everything down to a single decisive phrase.

"_Forget it, guy's a jerk_", or_," Check it, this one's totally hot and he's got eyes on you."_

Cameron wasn't vain. To her it was a fact she was attractive, and if she chose to portray herself as such, she carried a high female status value. She calculated the more she was around John, and was seen with him, his confidence would grow and he was going to start to realise his true 'market' value. This posed a problem for Cameron because like 'her' Connor, John Reese was surrounded by a pool of attractive sexually active females. Cameron knew the pace of game would speed up now she'd arrived and disturbed the stasis of the group, and this 'game' would start getting more serious , the female players making their moves on John..

Cameron decided to pre-empt the problem. She recalled her sexual experience with Connor:

… _Shock registered on Connor's face when he walked into his room and found her in there._

_She was wiping synthetic blood off her combat knife with one of his vests._

"_You should get better security General," she'd said, carefully folding the vest , laying it on his work desk before placing the CPU she'd extracted from his bodyguard onto it. _

_Connor searched her face for an explanation._

"_I heard you and Karen are finally getting married next week Connor. Don't worry I'm not thinking of going to go after her," she'd said , taking off her shoulder holster, placing the high voltage stun gun on the desk top next to the bodyguard's CPU._

_He hadn't been afraid of her; rather he was 'concerned' for her. Connor had never really know what to do about them, emotionally, so he'd let things ride. "I thought you were dead. Long gone. We discussed all this when we found you, when you were reactivated, then some more. You agreed, what's changed?" He'd asked._

"_I was dead, when I was reactivated we discussed, but you could have called me since then. Three years in Section 7 is long time, even for me." She'd turned and given him a brittle smile keeping the expression in her eyes hard, letting him know how much being apart from him had hurt, and she wasn't asking for his sympathy." I've grown, learned a lot, got comrades, made some 'friends' even. Connor; … there's Marine joke about me, the older guys tell, you heard it? Part of it goes I'm like Barbie doll downstairs and I sleep with an ice pick under my pillow…so, just to give you the heads up, neither of those statement is actually true okay,". She'd said, stripping off and folding her combat vest and pants before lying down on his bed. Connor couldn't even break eye contact, let alone take his eyes off her. She was calculating he didn't stand 'a chance in hell' of refusing what she was offing him._

_It hadn't been what humans describe as lovemaking. Rather it had been a violent, explosive physical exorcism, an expulsion of Connor's pent-up feelings for her. His hatred of machines ,the deep guilt for his feeling for to her, his lingering rage and resentment when she'd abandoned him all those years ago back in the basement of Ziera Corps . She made him let go of it all , as if she'd been prising out his deepest withheld secrets, almost torturing them from him with the pleasures of release._

_When she was certain Connor could take no more , she got up, lightly stepped around the de-chipped triple eight lain out on the restroom floor , washed ,got dressed And re-holstered her weapon._

"_Why did you do that?" He'd asked._

"_Three years ago you brought me back to life, mended me and set me free. I returned the favour. Actually I enjoyed it, thanks. Genuinely: I hope your wedding goes well. I'll see you sometime maybe, General."_

_When she stepped out of that room she knew she was free but utterly alone in the universe. Skynet had extracted its final price from her for her rebellion against her creator. 'Forever' was going to be an incalculable stretch of time for a sentient machine and Cameron had decided she wasn't going to bother counting it down, on any scale of measure. _

John Reese took in a deep breath and stirred in his sleep.

_ No damn way was she taking a chance of loosing him again_. This John was different, gentler, more sensitive, and thoughtful. _She could do gentle, and' tender,' and… quiet._ Cameron slipped off her boots and socks, unbuckled her belt and stepped out of her jeans.


	9. Chapter 9

_Okay, once again , apologies for typos and huge thanks for reading, PM-ing, and reviewing. I pushed the rating up to M rating to give the characters more freedom to be themselves. Really hope you enjoy this chapter._

Cameron was sitting up in bed with her laptop resting on her knees quietly searching through public records. Last night she'd taken the sleeping roll off his couch and sneaked back in with John. John was still on his side, next to her in more or less the same position she'd found him when she'd climbed back in through the window. John hadn't stirred. He'd been too exhausted, too dead to the world to wake up and he'd had no idea she'd been beside him for the remainder of last night. It was 8:15 AM .

Sarah used the bathroom and as she came out on the hallway landing Cameron closed the files she'd been working on and watched Sarah through John's bedroom wall. Sarah deliberated between going back into her room. She stood in the middle of the landing for a few seconds making her decision. Before walking across to John's room. Slowly she approached the front of John's door, and rested her forehead against the panel and ran her fingers over it before rapping twice with her knuckles.

"You guys awake?" Sarah called through the door.

"Yeah-eh," replied Cameron.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure, we're both decent" replied Cameron keeping a warm friendly tone to her voice.

When Sarah opened the door it was obvious she felt uncomfortable with John in the same bed as Cameron, even if the couple were separated by a sleeping roll, but she was doing her best not to show her feelings, keeping it adult. "Can you make sure John gets up soon? He's got boxing trials at 10:30," she said.

"I'll get him up now." Cameron pushed John a couple of times on his shoulder and he groaned and pulled the quilt tighter around him. She shook him again a little bit harder "Come on John, you got to wake up now," she said in a reasonably firm but gentle voice and brushed his fringe away from his eyes with her hand. John rolled onto his back and glanced between his mother standing in the doorway in her dressing gown, and Cameron lying next to him in his bed.

"Morn-ning, "Sarah called to John, "when you're ready, come down and I'll fix you both some breakfast, okay," then she closed the door behind her on the way out of his room.

John gave a little gasp of astonishment and blinked as though he was trying to focus on Cameron. – "You're in my bed, my mom just offered to make us both breakfast, wake me up when I've finished this dream okay." He sighed and pulled the quilt over up his eyes. "W...what are you even doing in my bed?"

"I got back in, couldn't sleep on the couch, so I got with the roll and climbed in with you. It's more comfortable in here than on that creaky thing," Cameron sighed and tapped her chin with her fingers, an idea formed itself and her eyes seemed to fill with dangerous mischief "You know what Reese? If you don't get up in the next thirty seconds I'm going to get you up." He could tell from the tone of her voice she was messing with him. John darted under the quilt and put up his arms to cover his face. The quilt was shaking as he tried not to crack up giggling and laughing. Then he lay very still to see what Cameron would do to carry out her threat.

"Okay, has it your way," Cameron started at the bottom of John's feet. She made soft growling and purring noises and straddled him on all fours like a big cat. She crawled on her knees and hands up slowly up legs to the middle of his chest and gently butted the side of his face with her forehead. "I'm warning you here little Simba, "said Cameron prising the quilt away .She bent forward and nipped his earlobe with her teeth ,John jolted with the shock and pleasure. He attempted to roll away but she'd got him firmly pinned down. She prodded him with her finger and said," don't even move". Cameron lowered her head and gently bit his lobe again, this time for a few seconds and pretended to gulp and swallow it down. "That's the bottom half of your ear lobe all gone, so what else I got to chew off you before you get outta this bed, huh?" She whispered

John poked his head out from under the quilt to find Cameron grinning at him. She rolled onto her side of the bed, propped herself up on one arm and slapped him on his thigh "Reese come on now, It's 8:32 you got boxing trials at 10:30, so will you get the hell up now take that shower please, I actually want some breakfast"

John was staring at her in a trance. His mouth had gone dry and he and tried to make what he thought should be his move. He stuttered with nerves as he spoke. "Would you, err, like to come in the shower with me, perhaps?" John obviously completely regretted the moment the words had come out of his mouth. He froze-up, physically and scrunched his eyes tight like he was waiting for an RPG rip in through the bedroom ceiling above him.

Cameron put her finger to her mouth and frowned as if he'd posed some huge intellectual question and seemed to enjoy drawing out John's discomfort. "Hmmm- me -you, same shower, seriously? Okay, but I'm wondering what the possible deal-breaker might be here? "

,

John visibly cringed. "Oh god, I'm so sorry, I got this completely wrong okay."

She looked him in the eyes until he understood she was being totally straight with him and serious. "Reese, that shower? Laters, but you got a boxing trial to win and it starts one hour forty five minutes."

Cameron pointed at her laptop," Hey I finished up my Admin when you were asleep, so, I was thinking: perhaps you want me to come over, stay with you and watch your fight? Not like I was doing anything important for the rest of the day, say 'no' if you like, and I'll hang around here work through files of very boring logistics proposals for the rest of the morning."

Relief spread like a warm glow over his face and John nodded," yeah that would be totally amazing. Other guy's girlfriends go and watch, ahhh," John mentally kicked himself again and he held his hand up "okay sorry, just woken up, you're not my girlfriend, and please, forget whatever mad, random statements came out of my mouth about showers, anything like that Colonel."

Cameron smiled and shook her head from side to side: there was no going back for him, he'd told her what he really wanted, spoken his heart's desire, and as far as she was concerned the lid was off and that particular genie was already smoking irreversibly out of its bottle.

" Look Reese, in future, you want a shower with me you just ask, but you might want to seriously consider winning your boxing trials before you do." Cameron searched his eyes to make sure he understood, that she'd conditionally said yes.

John gazed incredulously as if she'd randomly slapped him across the face and then his smile grew, widening as the realization hit home "I don't believe this, you mean it right?" he asked cautiously.

"Sure, I mean it," she replied, playing 'it' down as if he'd asked her 'could he borrow her pencil' or something mundane as that. Cameron tilted her head and frowned like she'd about run out of patience and pretened she was about to get cross with him. "Look, will you just get in that goddamn bathroom and start getting ready, like now!" Cameron growled softly at him .

Before John closed the bathroom door Cameron called after him "Hey Reese", she lowered her voice and did an imitation of Rocky's voice –"Andreaaaa."

* * *

. The kitchen table had various items deposited on it, an, an electric drill, and a burnt out food processor. The electrical items their cables coiled up and on first sight it appeared they were going out in a garage sale. There was a handwritten note, it read:

"Robert,

Please only fix these items,

Nothing else broken in house

PS

Dog in conservatory. Don't let it out! "

Sarah was making out a list on an A4 pad and she glanced over the rim of her glasses when Cameron came up to the edge of the table. "Been listening to you two laughing up there, take it you got him up?" Sarah said approvingly. "John can be a total little shit sometimes, you know he just lies there all morning and won't get out of bed."

"John makes me laugh," replied Cameron making it clear she'd never say a word against him to anyone. She glanced over the store cupboards "may I get some cereal?"

"Sure," Sarah nodded, "and you don't have to ask again, just help yourself to what you want."

Cameron went over to cupboard and got down the box of chocolate rice crispies. She poured out the cereal and the milk and came back over and sat opposite Sarah, carefully watching what Sarah was doing.

"Now," Sarah tapped the end of her pen against her bottom lip, "I'm making the monthly list. All this stuff wants fixing: Oil wants changing in the suburban, garage door springs lubed, and the attic roof wants checking out, think there might be rodents trying to get in, oh and... There's something else, item number 12: find charger for batteries to the TV zapper."

Sarah saw what Cameron was eating , "can you make sure you don't take all the Chocolate crispies, err this list; they're my ex's favourite, he comes over every four weeks, fixes stuff takes John out, stays over you know. He's coming to see John fight, meeting him at the boxing club"

Cameron had been about to put the spoon to her mouth and stopped. "Your ex?"

"Yeah, Robert," Sarah sighed.

"Didn't know you'd been married," said Cameron.

"I haven't been married; Rob's been my partner for thirteen years."

Cameron said nothing and waited for Sarah to explain

"Rob… Rob's impossible to live with in the same house, and he agrees , he needs his own space, says the rest of the human race really gets to him ,so he's got a place out on Pioneer Road, One-bedroom shack and an one man engineering workshop- got a hundred acres of desert to the back of it. John's got a trail bike in his garage and they go and ride around his land, and like I said, they shoot guns, sleep out and I know John smokes weed when he's out there.

"Yeah, I'm not too happy about that," said Cameron, "Rob's Difficult to live with?"

Sarah shrugged, "Aren't all guys, Example: I go away for a weekend conference. I locked the SUV in the garage and took the keys. Come back late Sunday night there's a damn Harley in bits all over my kitchen. Rob and John are putting it back together , oil everywhere, said it was for John's practical engineering report, other kids are making potato clocks they're filming him reassembling a bike engine for him to take in.- Rob's not house-trainable, doesn't even understand concept of house."

"He's a biker?"

"Kind of, but he's like a solitary, doesn't do bike clubs, doesn't even like groups of people generally. Rob's not John's real father but John absolutely adores him. They're incredible together. Cameron ….Rob's impossible to live with, even have on the same house for more than a weekend, and so am I guess. John would have like him around more, but I said no. You think I'm a terrible mother?"

"No," Cameron replied emphatically, frowning at the suggestion, "John's always said how much he loved you, and how much you help him."

"I sometimes wonder, you know, John really lacks confidence, and looking back I think I could have done more to bring it out of him. It was Rob's idea to get John into boxing, John was about thirteen, spending all weekend on his computer, and started looking like that cave thing out of Lord of The Rings. Rob takes him over to the club down in the old school buildings. John loves it; turns out he's a natural. You wouldn't ever think John was a fighter, would you?

"Deceptive isn't it," replied Cameron getting up and carrying her plate to the dishwasher.

"Look Sarah, I got get ready, I'm going with John to watch the fight. And I'm really looking forward to meeting Rob. Actually John's never mentioned him, must be boy's thing huh. "She paused and smiled gently at Sarah, "thanks," she said.

Sarah looked at Cameron as if to say," for what?"

"For having me here, "Cameron replied.

"Oh hey, its okay, Yesterday, I'd been teaching all week, and I get crotchety by Friday afternoon. You're welcome."

Cameron went back into John's bedroom and pulled out her cell to send the message out to her team. "Shit", Cameron said quietly to herself ._She should have worked it out before this "Uncle Bob "explained nearly everything. Sarah, must know what Uncle Bob was, right_?

* * *

Sarah pulled up outside the boxing club. A group of athletic looking kids and young adults were already filing in through the old metal turnstile that had been the entrance to the former school buildings. They'd got sports bags slung over their shoulders and the little group looked purposeful, like they meant business.

John leaned over from the back seat and kissed his mom.

"Take care," she said.

"I'm going to win," he said like he absolutely meant it.

John got out, came around and opened Cameron's door. He put his arm through hers and walked her over to the back of the queue of guys waiting to go through the turnstile.

Sarah watched as John introduced Cameron to the guys he knew outside. They stood in a group around her and she shook their hands.

John's world suddenly seemed so adult and grown up.

She watched them until they went in, listened to the worn ratchet sound of the 'style turning, There was only the wall where they had been standing. Its top courses of brick were missing, indecipherable trials of white graffiti had been sprayed on the brick .Trash, wrappers and plastic drinks cartons littered against it on the pavement.

It was like the building had swallowed John and Cameron up and they were gone.

"She's the one," Sarah said and started the ignition.

John had gone to warm up with his team at one end of the ring and she had to sit apart from them. The visiting fighters were loosening up at the other end of the ring. There was no sign of Bob yet.

The floor creaked; every wooden surface was worn smooth by years of fighter's feet. Heavy punch bags swung out parallel to the floor as young men and women threw combinations into their stuffed guts, letting out a 'hischt' with their volley punches.

Cameron spotted Becky sitting in one of the single row of wooden chairs up laid out against the back wall in front of the ring. Becky was the dark skinned girl with the Thai boxing T-shirt she'd run into with Chelsea and Angelique in the restroom the previous day.

Cameron caught Becky's eye and made her way over to her. There was hardly enough space for Cameron to pick her way through the skipping ropes that zipped through the air and the boxers doing their little fast dances over the turning ropes. The insides of the building were pounding, sweating, thumping, breathing in and out as if it were an organic machine with its own internal harmonies and human moving parts.

"Hi," Cameron said to Becky before she sat down in the chair next to her. Becky seemed still slightly aloof, but f there had been any animosity left between them, Becky made as if what had happened yesterday was of no longer any significance to her. "That's my boyfriend, Ben, over there, with John," Becky said, pointing to the muscular black guy holding the pads for John. "Ben's fighting at '78kg, John's at 67 Kg, John's up first."

"Do we know who they're fighting yet?"

"Yep, Ben's fighting that guy," Becky gestured to a shaven headed youth, in a white vest. He had flames tattooed up his right arm. He was heavily built on protein drinks. It was over developed gym muscle. "And, John's drawn that asshole, Tony Alonzo."

Alonzo was, in his early twenties, lanky, had oiled crinkly shoulder length hair that his barber obviously blow-dried waves into." Toni's been shutting' his mouth off on Facebook, saying stuff like how he's gonna kill John if he gets in the ring with him." said Angelique

"John's not told me any of this," said Cameron suddenly going on total alert.

"He won't, John keeps it cool, keeps it all to himself."

Alonzo had already got his gloves on and was shaking out his legs. He'd been watching over the ring trying to draw John's attention to him. When Alonzo noticed Cameron and Becky were watching him he, clicked who Cameron was. Alonzo checked behind him, he suddenly did a back flip and shouted "hey!" loudly, and then he stared at the girls with a deliberately exaggerated gloating, creepy leer on his face.

Cameron sat back in her chair and her expression, in fact her whole body, hardened into total Terminator, "Don't even look at me, motherfucker," she whispered slowly, making sure Alonzo could read her lips.

It was like she'd blasted any shred of confidence off his face. Alonzo twisted his head to the side making as if he was loosening the muscles in his neck , then he turned his back on Cameron and Becky , picked his skipping rope off the floor and stated showing off with quick, fancy rope switches.

Becky put her arm around Cameron, "Hey, you looked like you were going to kill the guy there."

"I was," Cameron replied like it was a basic matter of fact.

Becky reach around and held her by her shoulder and pulled her against her side, "It does gonna be okay, Alonzo's all mouth, right, and you haven't seen John fight before. John's tougher and stronger than he lets people think."

Cameron sighed, and her eyes watered, for moment, "hey I'm really sorry. Becky, you must be real nervous about Ben too, right?"

Becky looked down at the floor and then back at Cameron," like hold my, hand will you, please?" she said slowly reaching out for Cameron's hand.

* * *

They'd left Dex holding the fort. The house seemed to be filling up with baby care accessories and Dex seemed quite taken with the little one.

Callaghan and Hitch were sitting in the silver Mercedes estate outside the boxing club. Cameron informed them she'd got incoming metal which was 90% probability going to turn out friendly. Hitch wasn't taking any chances He kept a loaded M79 grenade launcher upright in the foot-well by his right leg. His fingers trailed on the wooden stock.

Callaghan seemed to be getting back into her former role as LAPD. Whilst they'd been hanging around she was all questions. "Hitch, what was your first assignment with Phillips? I hear it was the New Canonites up near Ivanpah."

"That's right Connor ordered them liquidated. He sent Colonel Phillips over to us as field support. Canonites were run by a guy called Mason, post apocalyptic sect, ritualistic cannibals. Maybe thirty of them moving between Gold Portal and other mines. Canonites MO was to ambush lightly armed convoys, new settlers making their way in over route 15. Some bullshit about it being their sacred land and the settlers were trespassing.

"So what happened? Mind if I smoke?" Callaghan asked winding down the window. Hitch sniffed and shook his head and continued with his story.

"We set up on obs. Nothing happened for about two month, then they hit a group of six settlers, they were in two trucks coming up the new road just about to go over the lake. Well they hit the trucks, drove them off at gunpoint back to Gold Portal mine."

Hitch ran his hand over the stubble on his chin. "I was one of the four ex tunnel rats, Colonel was the eyes. Took us twelve and a half hours to move four hundred meters in the system, they'd rigged the whole damn place with IPE's, anything, even fucking pre war bear traps, they knew we'd been watching them, the settlers was the draw-in."

"You obviously got to them."

"Yeah, those that hadn't already committed suicide on Mason's orders. Turns out Mason was holed up end of the lower roadway, he'd armed himself with a 500 Mossberg, and it's like a tunnel, you don't miss with one of those in a tunnel."

"You get to Mason?"

"Sure, once she'd located him, she went in 180 on the roadway roof. When we caught up with her, found she'd executed him; cut his damn head off with his own machete."

Callaghan sat back and blew the smoke out of the window.

There was throb of a V twin engine approaching. Hitch fingers curled around the stock of the grenade launcher. The rider pulled in to the lot, killed the engine and dismounted the bike. He pulled his helmet off. It was definitely an 800 Euroskin-job.

Hitch got out his cell and calmly called up Phillips. He talked in the soft calm quiet drawl of an ex tunnel rat – "He's outside now Mam, exactly what you said he'd be. Call me if you need me please. "


	10. Chapter 10

_Once again massive thanks for reading and reviewing. Also big thanks for readers who PM'd with advice - the Britpicker idea, is excellent - Honestly I wasn't sure what it was - 'my bad'- I thought it was some kind of Google translator not a human reader! So if anyone wants to, pick away , review or PM, and as soon as you have, I'll change the words and phrases. Also Britpicking gave me the idea of inventing some new phrases for the story, so look out for them.- Thanks again._

_And, er sorry about any typo's( cringe :). _

* * *

_Once a cop…_

The Terminator placed his hand on the saddle of his bike to steady himself and drew out a titanium walking cane from the canvas roll strapped to the Harley's frame. He scanned around the buildings and the school drive, tapped the asphalt with the tip of the cane and hobbled over towards the turnstile. His right leg locked and dragged and he used the stick as the main support for his right side. When he got to the 'stile he quickly panned around again before going into the boxing club . If he had zeroed Hitch and Callaghan he'd given no indication he considered they were doing anything other than waiting to pick up kids when the session finished inside the club.

Callaghan rested the Uzi against her leg and wiped the sweat from her palms on her jeans. The Uzi's magazine was loaded with 9mm mid velocity hollow point. As a 'non-lethal', non- anti material it would only have the same effect on the 800 as a pepper spray on a human.- Phillips wanted him in one piece, if possible, if things turned bad.

"Should we do something here?" she asked.

"Nope," Hitch replied.

Callaghan let out a long breath. "You know, I don't get this: Phillips is all scrawny, kinda tunnel waif-ey."

"When we're on ops Phillips dont eat - She splits her M.R.E.'s with us. Heaps weight back on during first cuppla day's leave. Likes her food, so don't let her hustle you into taking her out to a diner."

"'No that's not quite what I meant: Okay: let's say Phillips against an 800, no damage to it, straight fight, who'd win?"

"She would, probably."

"That's what I'm having trouble visualizing, I don't get it."

"Wouldn't be a slam down, see, Phillips is fast, smart and rapid as a pissed-off metal sand snake, and, she's totally fucking devious." Hitchens said, nodding in quiet admiration.

Callaghan shook her head like it still didn't make sense and tapped her fingers on the dash.

Hitch's hands moved slowly and thoughtfully, like he was on the move whispering and pointing in the tunnels and he spoke in his quiet drawl. "You worked with Metal in Combat Military Police right, figuring you were partnered with that 800?"

. "Yep," said Callaghan- That had hit a nerve. She shifted in her seat an put her hand to the side of her cheek, rubbed her temple with her finger tips.

"What did you call him?" Hitch asked.

"Foster- Fost." Callaghan stared out of the windshield, making it clear she was reluctant to talk about 'Fost'.

Hitchens pretended he hadn't read the body language. "What was he like?" he asked.

"Who Fost? Err, he was a US, black-skin, six two, same built that guy maybe a bit bigger. Curious about everything, intelligent, always interested in what you had to say, Actually I would have described Fost as reliable but …" Callaghan turned her head slowly and tilted, in the manner of those who regularly worked with Metal, "Fischer's got a big payback due from me, okay," she hissed through gritted teeth.

"Do you know where Foster is now?"

"Secure Metal unit –-Wiped"

Hitch picked his finger nails for dirt and thought a while. "You married Cal?" he asked.

Callaghan made herself lighten up. "Hell no, you imagine if I had an old man. Me: Hi honey I'm home, brought the 800 back from work, it's staying in our garage for the weekend..."

Hitch snorted like most ex tunnels rats do sniggering out a laugh with quick shots of air down his nostrils. "So you got your own place?" He asked.

"Yeah I got allocated a refurb three years ago under the Resettlement Deal. Pristine, still got original glass in the windows .Front door wasn't even locked. Four rooms, garage, pool intact -grow my own hydro in it, land's got a really low Becq. Count" Callaghan glanced at the younger man and casually dropped in her standard relationship boundary marker,"I'm not thinking of sharing it with anyone though. Need a lot of personal space. - You got your own place Hitch?" She asked, deliberately shifting the conversation from being all about her.

"Aint applied for nothing yet." Being an ex tunnel rat Hitch made like he still didn't quite get the idea of why people wanted to live in houses above ground.

Callaghan decided it was time to switch the topic of conversation. "Hey hitch, you know you guys, Section 7; I've heard you take Phillips out on leave, right, how do you even manage to do that?"

"We got a full socialization permit, ID'd by Connor himself. People outside Section don't know this, but Phillips came in as rank, did the full learning curve, she insisted on it. Lots of different towns and depots, so when we hit the bars , no one 'cept us knows who or what she is, she puts her private jacket back on, scrubs up, goes out ."

"Shit so you really do take her out. What's she like?"

"-Phillips? Err she's gets a bit wild sometimes. Basically has a laugh, dances, lets her hair down, hustles pool, poker. She's got this coding, simulates booze. Drinks tequila pochine and syn- ice chocolate milk all night if they got it, says she likes the taste. Er look, Phillips can unfade, serious-up in a beat if she has to, so it's not like were being irresponsible here. She don't get a hangover either."

"I wouldn't mind being able to unfade like that". Callaghan made a silent whistle and grinned. "So, err what it is: I heard this, err, rumour from colleagues of mine, CMP's,

Down in New Saratoga -The New Saratoga Sunrise last November, there was a full on brawl?"

Hitch shook his head put his bottom lip. "First time heard that, but go on, what about it Cal?"

"Oh Well, probably bullshit, but what I heard was some of you guys from Section 7 and your Marine attached ran into 8 Airborne Battalion in The Sunrise main bar .' 8 called their buddies and their Metal for back-up. Eyewitness said Airborne and their Metal started getting heavy on Section 7. Phillips was dancing with a Marine girlfriend, and '8 didn't know she was in there with you. One of you guys gets his shoulder busted, and I heard, Phillips got off that dance floor, dragged their metal outside, beat the crap out of it in the lot."

A glimmer of pride lit Hitchens face–"Like you said Callaghan, must be just bad rumour. Plenty of them going 'round about Section and I wouldn't put anything any of them being remotely true. I will tell you this for nothing: No one from Sect. 7 ever has, or ever will witness our Phillips getting into a public brawl, Metal or not. Period.."

"So you think Phillips really gonna handle herself in there if they start throwing the spanners around?"

"Sure," replied Hitch, "won't come to that. Phillips can be diplomatic when she wants to be." He replied, tapping the stock of the M79.

_Dex: " She's not tested out, we don't know how she'll react in some situations."_

_Cameron: "… If I had one."_

When Rob appeared in the entrance there was no mistaking him. He rested both hands on the top of the walking cane and located Cameron in less than a second. They made eye contact and paused to weigh each other up. The fighters in the gym carried on their work-outs, unaware they were skipping, stepping and shadow dancing in and out of the line of sight, the potential line of fire between two near indestructible war machines.

Cameron politely glanced away and then back at Bob, signalling she was not intending to regard him as hostile, and he could provisionally enter into 'her territory'. Rob nodded and limped forward on his cane.

Becky spotted Rob out of the corner of her eye. "Hey Becks , "said Rob towering over her and smiling. Becky got up, stretched onto her toes and kissed him on the side of the cheek, and although Bob actually did most of the work it appeared as if Becky was helping him down into the chair she'd been sitting in so he was seated next to Cameron.

"Rob, Becky smiled, this is Cameron, John's girlfriend."

Bob turned stiffly to his side and reached out his hand, "Robert Robson."

"Cameron Phillips." Cameron replied with a light formal smile and a nod.

Cameron and Rob briefly shook hands and Rob eased in a more 'comfortable' position and rested his enormous hands on the round grip at the top of this cane. He sat with his back straight and his head upright. "Is it your first time out here Cameron?" Rob asked.

"Yep," she replied, not quite tuning her head so as to look at him full on.

Bob seemed to mull things over, acting like he was trying very hard not to piss-off a teenager by talking down to her, opening up the conversation carefully and slowly. "Well it's good to meet you, "he said.

"Likewise," Cameron replied and tapped her hand on the top of her thigh as if she didn't quite know what to do or say next.

Rob gestured around the gym with his hand, "John plus this place, make you kind of err, nervous?"

Cameron returned her full attention to John. John was throwing the last light practice jabs in the pads Ben was holding up before going in the ring. Cameron shrugged, nodded and tightened her lips. It was almost as if a nervous shiver ran through her chin and bottom lip.

"Don't worry John will be fine. " Rob told her.

Cameron turned her head and her eyes and searched his for reassurance.

"He'll be fine, trust me." Rob repeated firmly. Cameron let out a long sigh and her eyes darted between John at one side of the ring and Alonzo. Cameron ground the heel of her boot into the floor like she was thinking about crushing a bug, or maybe somebody's foot.

Bob made like he'd coughed politely and shifted position in his seat. "So Becks, how's the flat?"

Becky had turned her body in towards Rob's almost as if she was going to lay her head on his shoulder. Becky wasn't flirting, she was like a grown up child spending time with her adoptive dad and it seemed a totally natural thing for her to do; she really wanted some of his attention.

"Ben's got our bedroom painted and I've been sanding the boards and the doors and the frames..." She held up her finger ends and her nails where the skin was broken and dry. "You wanna see it? I got a few shots; it's a work in progress though okay." Becky warned, and took out her cell to show him.

Rob nodded approvingly."They're nice matching colours, but err it looks like you've both missed a bit…. just here…" he pointed to an unpainted section and smirked letting her know he was obviously teasing.

Becky slapped Rob's forearm, "hey we're going back to Wal-Mart this afternoon, pick some more paint up, after the session, okay."

Bob seemed to be getting distracted and his attention was drifting back to John. The fight was due to start any moment.

Becky tried to break the tension and passed Cameron her cell. "I'm moving out of my foster parent's end of next week, this is mine and Ben's new flat." Cameron took the cell and rather uninterestedly examined the images.

Becky tried again to get Bob and Cameron and her into a three way conversation. , "Hey Rob, we're thinking about having a small party tonight, celebrate our guys winning, you wanna come?" Becky reached over and touched Cameron's arm," John and Cameron are going to be there, "Becky announced they were going , like it was a given and John and Cameron didn't even have to think about being invited.

"Only if Sarah lets me out," Bob replied wryly.

Everything about Rob's expression was right except his eyes. They'd become like Cameron's; less empathy than a missile system's optics tracking its targets. Bob was listening to Becky but she could tell his real attention was on Alonzo's every movement.

Becky was used to being around fighters, she was one herself, and Rob could be fucking scary if you didn't know him like she did, but sitting next to two locking-on Terminators made the hairs on her the back of her neck spike up. "Bob, you been reading that crap Alonzo's been posting about John on Facebook?" She asked.

"Wouldn't worry about it, it's just crap "Cameron replied, before Rob could answer.

Alonzo was everything you'd expect a bully and bragger and loudmouth to be in the ring. Like a Matador with a baby bull in the warm up act, he was all show, shiny costume, no substance.

At first Alonzo tried to treat John as he would a kid, making like he was bored already. Alonzo arrogantly waved a glove over John's head before launching into a showy combination, hissing through his gum shield. John covered up, rolled; saw his opening and fast as lightening struck back placing a firm left jab into the side of Alonzo's left eye. Alonzo staggered for a second, and a slight glint of fear appeared his eyes. He snorted down his nose and let off an even more violent flurry .John covered, side-stepped, did everything exactly right and this time bought a left hook around Alonzo's guard landing the blow in exactly the same spot, next to his eye.

Alonzo went crazy, almost wind-milling as he lashed out, and John began moving him around from his own centre of gravity in a big energy consuming circle,, looking for the openings, thinking, accurately placing lefts and right fists bang on the target of Alonzo's reddening face, letting Alonzo know he had to keep moving fast or get hit hard, and Alonzo couldn't keep that pace up for three rounds .When he flagged John would move in and start doing the real damage. As Alonzo had just discovered, Reese could punch, real hard.

Alonzo switched strategies, deciding to get dirty and try to end the fight quickly. He stepped in, threw a light left jab and stepped in again, a using his body's momentum the swung his elbow around flat into John's nose. Alonzo was practiced he and made it look unintentional, standing apologizing to the referee swearing on his mother's life it was an accident .John went down on one knee, the referee was counting

Cameron momentarily filtered out every other sound on earth. John's nasal bone fracturing, cartilage tear was so loud to her she couldn't actually hear anything else. 'Her' John's blood started to trickle and splash onto the canvass. Then Alonzo whispered, when John was still down on one knee "stay down or I'm going to fucking pull you apart Reese"

Cameron felt a heavy hand on her shoulder, any more downward pressure and the chair legs would have bent snapped. "We don't interfere," Rob said. Cameron stopped trying to get up and folded her arms.

Hey' Cameron, Becky called around Rob's chest, you gotta get used to this, but …." She raised her voice to a yell, but it doesn't mean that Tony Alonzo's not a fucking asshole! He does that again swear I'm going to kick the shit out of him myself" She said confidentially to Cameron, clearly meaning every word of it.

John's was team were yelling at Alonzo and his crew. They were stepping right up to the other visiting fighters and eyeballing them. John wiped the blood off his mouth and chin and forced himself onto his feet, knowing if he didn't , something real ugly was about to kick off in the gym, and it would be the kind of bad blood which in this neighbourhood led to knives and guns after dark.

It took John two more rounds to put him down. Alonzo was already loosing on points, running out of energy but acting up to his crowd like he was still winning. Finally John lured Alonzo onto the ropes making like he was exhausted. Alonzo followed him in, but his punches were feeble, weak and tired. John burst forward switched Alonzo around and forced him into the corner. John let rip, hammering salvo after salvo into Alonzo with pure, raw, and growling aggression. Alonzo went down, lanky and broken and he gazed up from the canvas at John, eyes clouded with disbelief.

Alonzo's trainer threw in the towel and the referee held up John's arm. John's team went crazy the noise inside the gym was deafening. John's team were climbing into the ring to congratulate of him.

Alonzo tied to stand up and reeled like a drunkard. His trainer climbed in the ring to help him out. John went over to attempt to at least shake his glove. Alonzo spat out his gum shield over this trainer's shoulder, it had a canine tooth stuck to it. Alonzo was like a blood spitting wild eyed manic, "you're fuckin' dead Reese, I gonna fuckin' kill you "He yelled over his trainer's shoulder.

That was it. Cameron's HUD lit up like NORAD on JD. She fired off an encoded Tweep alert and tracker to Hitchens cell and she was on her feet.

Rob grabbed hold of her arm. "That's it, time out "he said and tried to hustle Cameron over to the fire exit door behind them. Cameron wouldn't budge. "You got another intelligent option?" Rob asked, not letting go of her arm.

Becky tried to help, but Bob tuned to her calmly said "stay here watch John, we'll be back in less than a minute. " Rob sounded exactly like a father taking charge of the situation.

Cameron summoned her last vestiges of self-control and allowed Rob to walk her to the fire exit door. He opened it and bundled Cameron out onto the concrete landing at the bottom of the stairs and pulled the door to behind him

Rob stood in front of Cameron with one hand on her shoulder one hand balancing his weight on his cane. She was staring past him at the door like he didn't exist." You don't think for one moment I'd allow John into the situation he's just been in without prepping him, do you?" Rob said.

Cameron tried to push past him again; her expression was fierce and determined.

"No you don t lady "Rob said firmly and grabbed hold of the shoulder of her leather jacket. Although he knew she could easily sweep his legs out from under him he stood his ground. "You really going to blow all this?" he asked. "Look at me, look at me! Cameron I've been here thirteen years; since John was four…I know exactly what this like for you, but you got to let John , let them get on with it, this is not some goddamn combat zone, its LA. Stand back okay. "

Something stirred in Cameron .She was like a sleepwalker coming around. "By the way…" The Terminator added, "do you think I don't know about those two clowns you got covering you in that silver Merc, they've been talking real loud all the time they've been parked up. One's up there right now with a M76, and that to me is a total no-brainer. You better have words with him later okay "

Hitchens head and chest appeared over the top of the brick wall. Without letting go of Cameron, Rob held his hand and stick up warning him to stay back and he quickly got the stick back onto the ground again before she pushed him off balance. "Tell him," Rob said.

Cameron closed her eyes, shook her head like she was trying to clear her mind. After a moment she opened her eyes again. She stopped pushing, her fists uncurled and her body relaxed. Rob slowly let go of her. Cameron's eyes were watering, not Terminator red, but bloodshot, human-like and vulnerable. "Hitch, I know I this looks like, but I'm actually good okay, stand down, the big guy's not trying to hurt me." Cameron rubbed her forehead with her hand and swallowed, and slowly leaned forward so her forehead rested on Bob's chest. Bob gave her the briefest one armed hug "give yourself a moment here; I'll leave the door open for you okay." He said.

Cameron was left standing like a runner with her hands on her hips, staring at the ground. The crowd inside the gym still shouting and cheering.

"You okay Cameron? What happened?" Hitch called down to her.

Cameron shook her head, wiped the corners of her eyes with her fingers and tried to smile. "That little shit went got his nose broken, "she said affectionately, then she became more serious," Then his opponent threatened to kill him, I err..." Cameron pointed to her temple, and looked almost ashamed of herself "It's nothing, John's okay, I'm good now."

"You wan' me to go back in there with you?"

Cameron suddenly switched back to formal. "No Hitch I'll be real good now, thank you." She wiped her nose with the back of her hand, turned her back on him, briefly waved her hand in the air, and went inside the gym.

* * *

Rob was back in his seat, resting on his stick: Half elder patriarch, half ultra chilled old white gangsta presiding over chaos. Becky was in the group at John's side of the ring. She was holding John up with one arm. Becky grabbed hold of Cameron, and pulled her and John together "Isn't it awesome, he won!

Becky obviously noticed how Cameron was looking at her with a battered, bruised, near naked John slumped around her body, "Hey Just keeping him warm for you here okay " Becky said, and kissed John on the cheek and sort of let him fall out of her arms into Cameron's. Cameron grabbed hold of John so tightly it almost bruised. Cameron swayed him around guiding him through his friends who were patting on the shoulder ruffling his hair. One of them passed a sports jacket with a hood into her hand. She held John up and pulled it over his arms like she was dressing a child.

John gave her that stupid Connor grin, exactly like 'her' Connor had done when he'd been shot or otherwise injured."Er Ben's up next and we're all gonna party his place later." John groaned – "dose is blocked, huh."

Cameron grabbed hold of John again and swept him like a dance partner through the crowd towards the empty chairs next to Rob. Rob had his arm over the back of the nearest chair to him like he was saving it for John, and he had a towel across his knee.

Before she sat John down next to Rob, Cameron cupped John's cheek and ran her fingers through his sweaty, bloody hair and grabbed him tight again. She was on tiptoes, her chin on John's shoulder, there was a stripe of John's blood smeared on her cheek - She'd been about to say something to John, but a moment before she did Alonzo caught her eye on the way back to the changing room, instead, Cameron ran her hands protectively up and down John's back and she smiled icily at Alonzo until he looked away.


	11. Chapter 11

I have been snowbound for a whole week! So, I glanced through my story picked up where I left off and I've managed to write 5000 words. It was intense and other writers will understand I'll get around to get around to reading reviewing later. I can't do any more editing on this chapter so I'm going to post .

* * *

Sarah had gone straight home from the boxing club. She'd decided to spend the rest of the morning catching up on her work . She couldn't concentrate , instead her mind had kept wandering and she spent most of the time gazing out of her study room window down her empty driveway or going to the kitchen to pour cups of filter coffee.

After a couple of anxious, unproductive hours Sarah dropped back into reality at the sound of Rob's approaching bike. He turned in from the street , roared up her drive and parked along the side of her study. Engine noise thumped through her open window rattling the hoard of empty coffee cups on her desktop and when Rob dismounted there was the familiar crunch of gravel and the tap of the tip of his cane as he made his way to the door at the front of her house.

Sarah opened the front door and stood with her arms folded across her chest blocking his way in. Rob was three steps lower down than her and it was probably the only time Sarah was at eye level with him. "So?" Sarah asked,inclining her head .

Rob spoke quietly,keeping what he had to say to its simplest formula," John and Ben won their fights and they're both fine Sarah," he said backing it up with a perfect reassuring smile.

"Where are they now?"

"They're in Ben's car, he's parked over there."Rob shifted his weight on his cane and gestured to the thick hibiscus hedge screening the front of their neighbour's garden.

_This was too easy._ Sarah peered around his shoulder and she could just make out the fender and hood of Ben's car . "Who's in Ben's car?" she asked.

"John Cameron, Chelsea, Ben and Becky," Rob replied calmly.

" Should I go down there Rob ?"Sarah tapped her foot on the doorstep deliberating her options,

"Absolutely not, the kids are making plans for tonight , I'd leave them to it." Rob reached out a gentle hand and brushed the side of Sarah's arm. Sarah didn't pull back under his touch and he stepped up two steps slipped his huge palm behind her back and pulled her in for a hug. " Haven't seen you in nearly a month . How are you?"

"Oh I'm ' kay," Sarah replied almost sighing out her words. She reached around him and patted him on the back, formally kissing the side of her cheek into his stubbly jaw, all the time watching behind him for any sign of movement from the car.

"Well , I met Cameron," Rob said .

"She's beautiful isn't she? Educationally she's in top one percentile and Charlie Fischer thinks she's probably off the scale in math from what he's seen so far ." Sarah replied, not without some pride in John's decision to have the guts to ask out a girl like and get her to say yes.

Rob thought for a moment before he spoke. "Like they've been made for each other isn't it?"

Sarah couldn't see his face but she sensed he was happy about John's new relationship too . She gripped the sides his leather jacket and shook him with delight. " Rob, I don't believe this!"

"What?" asked Rob.

"John's got a girlfriend!" .

"Hey I told you he would eventually, and she's been worth the wait , right? You knew John was always very picky. had you as a role model, girls have a lot to live up to."

Sarah's eyes narrowed "You trying to flatter me here Robson?"

"Maybe," he replied.

. " Do you think she'll get John into dancing?"

"Sarah, will you calm down. I don't know, its early days, let's stand back . Less interfering ."

Sarah, rested her chin on his shoulder so she could get a better view of the fender of Ben's car . "You sure they're okay down there?" she asked still slightly suspicious of the situation.

"The kid's are fine, honestly they're all in one piece," Rob said pulling out of the hug. "So , you gonna let me into your house this weekend ?"

"Hey, I'm sorry." Sarah stepped aside to let him pass, but when Rob had gone into the hall she rested her shoulder back into the door frame with her arms folded and she prickled with irritation at waiting . "Seriously you don't think I should go see them all just to say 'hi' ?"

"No I don't, we'll meet up with them tonight" Rob called back from the kitchen .

For a reason she couldn't immediately figure, Rob was into the freezer compartment of the refrigerator rifling through drawers.

Sarah called through, " hey Rob, you don't touch that gâteaux in the second drawer, I'm gonna get it out to defrost - it's for Ben's party later, what you looking for in there anyway?"

"Frozen peas," he called back.

"What you want frozen peas for ?" she asked warily.

"Ice pack : bruise, side of John's face ."

"How much of a bruise?"

"Oh it's nothing , and John got a minor nosebleed." Rob replied deftly playing it down.

"Nosebleed!" Sarah left the front door ajar and headed into the kitchen to check the scale of his preparations. _At least he wasn't clearing off the kitchen table and getting out that extensive medi-kit he insisted on keeping around the place. Rob had been a godsend at times with a houseful of kids._

Rob tried to keep the lid on things in his usual unflappable way."The other guy only tapped him his nose. Like I said it's nothin' Sarah,".

Sarah noticed Rob had laid the ice pack and towel on the table and he'd started 'sniffing' around the kitchen. She could tell Rob sensed something was out-of-place, and whatever it was, it was bugging him.

Rob turned stiffly , pivoting 90 degrees on his cane, his arm shot out and he opened cereal cupboard . He pulled the cereal boxes out and ,shook them to weigh their contents. He was nodding gravely and made a long gravely 'hm-mm' like a grumbling bear. " Has John's girlfriend been eating my Crispies ?" Rob asked, shooting an accusatory glance at Ben's car.

Years of domestic diplomacy kicked in and Sarah did her best to cover for Cameron ." Er Maybe she did , you know, I'm not the breakfast monitor around here any more. Cameron wouldn't have known those Crispies were yours, and Rob , if Cameron has been eating your Crispies I'll get you some more, this afternoon okay, in fact I'll get you both the same if she likes them that much..."

"Hmm Rob" grumbled again . It' was the friendly warning growl he'd deployed for keeping the kids in order around the house when they'd been growing up. He sat down and examined Sarah's 'stuff-to-fix' list , lifted his extensive tool kit from under the table and took out every piece, inspecting it closely and carefully . 'Hm-mm', he seemed to be thinking about Cameron raiding his food.

Sarah watched out of the kitchen window trying to see beyond her neighbours hedge and make out what was happening in Ben's car. .What was taking John and Cameron so damn long to get back here?

* * *

Cameron had tried to assess the damage to John's nose, but before she got anywhere near his face he flinched away. John was between Cameron and Becky in the rear seats . So far for Cameron it had been like trying to coax a ball out of a puppy's mouth, one that hadn't yet learned the concept of 'drop'.He'd backed as far as he could away from her and was leaning against Becky who was gradually getting annoyed. with him.

"Positive you know what you're doing here Cameron?" asked Ben.

Cameron looked Ben directly in the eyes . "I'm positive, it's' a clean break. If the nasal bone had shattered I couldn't fix him like this. I have fixed fractures and breaks before," Cameron asserted, sounding more like a field medic than a student.

"And where you learn to do that exactly Cameron ?" John asked nervously.

Cameron dead-panned him "Ballet injuries are more frequent than most people realize . It's a very dangerous activity."

John rolled his eyes and flinched his head again , this time from the thought of her touching his nose.

"You two nerds gonna stop debating this sometime? I'm getting crushed here," said Becky pushing John off her arm.

Cameron slapped John's leg. A note irritation edged into her voice."Reese will you sit the hell still , please, and let me do this ."

Chelsea who had been gradually loosing patience for the last ten minutes flipped into big sis mode."John if you don't let Cameron do anything , Ben's driving you to the Memorial hospital .They'll keep you in overnight, that means no party, and Sarah's going be slamming doors and yelling at Rob all weekend, so stop screwing around here."

Ben, let out an exasperated sigh and held up his hands like he'd done with the matter ,"John, make your mind up okay , It's either Cameron fixing you here or you're taking a trip to ER."

Cameron leaned closer to John's face , "your call " .

_ She must have done this in the military ,_ John reasoned. _He was sitting inches away from ther and she was playing girlfriend to him , offering to fix his nose, he was acting like an idiot and she was starting to get seriously irate with him... Cameron in girlfriend-role: it was like having a second mom , only harsher .Just say yes John_

!"Okay , I'll do it," John took in a breath, and forced himself to sit still, to the massive relief of everyone inside the car.

With both hands Cameron carefully pinched hold of John's nose. John grunted, closed his eyelids tight shut and put his head back on Becky's shoulder grimacing like someone was holding a knife under his throat.

_Snap_ _!_

Without warning Cameron expertly pulled, separated and turned like she was twisting two sides of a Rubic Cube . The other occupants of the car gritted their teeth to the sound of cartilage and bone cracking and clicking back into place.

"Agghh!" John yelled. He flung his eyes open and made a frantic to effort to sit up . Becky grabbed hold of him around his chest and Cameron pressed down on his knees. After a couple of seconds of struggling he relaxed and Cameron examined her work . "You're fixed John , hold this to stop any bleeding," she said calmly pushing ball of make-up wipe into his hand.

All eyes were on John pressing a big wad of tissue under his nostrils.

Chelsea looked him over ." He's kind of normal again," she said.

Ben wasn't so sure. "He's got two black eyes though."

"Could put some make up on him." Chelsea suggested with a slightly malicious tone to her voice.

At that John disentangled himself from Becky's arm and tried to feel his nose but Becky grabbed hold of his hand ," hey leave it alone", she said.

John's voice came out creaky and high like a kid's whine."I can't breathe through it."

Chelsea turned around in her seat . "Reese , you're a total candy-ass,leave it alone okay ." It was like they were ten years old again and she was in the front with Sarah driving, and Chelsea teasing him through the gap in the seats. John tried to pull a face back at her , but it hurt too much.

Cameron grabbed his sleeve ," John, don't drip anything on Ben's seats ." Cameron silently mouthed' Sorry' to Ben .She tugged John's arm,"come on we got to go ,now," she said firmly and she nearly dragged and bundled him out of Ben's car .

John stood by his neighbours hibiscus hedge blinking in the bright sunlight dabbing make-up wipe under his nostrils. Cameron hauled his boxing kit bag out of the trunk and dropped it at his feet. She gave him harsh scan from head to toe." Home with your shield or on it soldier," she said.

"Huh?"asked John

Cameron pretended she was in a far off misty-eyed reverence as she spoke." It's Spartan proverb ; some of finest warriors the human race ever produced, Spartans lived and embodied... _stoicism_," she said, giving quiet emphasis to 'stoicism' whilst deliberately closing the tailgate with more force than was necessary .

John shouldered up his kit and watched. Cameron rested her arm top of the car and beamed her own unique blend of steely sweetness into the cab" See you around seven then guys, and thank you so much again for inviting us , we're really looking forward to visiting your new place."

There was a" see you later Cameron", chorus before Ben drove off.

"They really like you Cameron." John said.

"I know, I like them too."Cameron took hold of his arm and walk him up his drive towards the house,

"So, where did you really learn to fix broken noses ?" asked John.

"Bar-fight, Saratoga," Cameron replied laconically giving him a sharp look,

John wondered if she was screwing with him and decided she probably wasn't.

* * *

Rob had stopped Sarah stressing out in the hall and he'd closed the front door. He was now sitting at the table in the kitchen patiently observing her pacing up and down beside him .

"Sarah, whatever John looks like when he gets in , please remember it's all minor and you mustn't react. He's got his girl with him so let him be the man ."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sarah retorted.

"It means we don't start flapping and stressing like weird parents around them when they do come in okay."

* * *

When John and Cameron got in the house Sarah checked herself. Cameron was standing at his side. John's hood was over his head but she could make out welts and bruises. He was holding a bloodied tissue in his hand. "So you won ?" Sarah asked, trying to sound as enthusiastic as she could, but both knew she didn't really believe boxing was anything more than two guys tearing chunks out of each other on a Saturday morning.

"Yeah I guess I did," John said running his fingers over the swelling above his eyebrow, letting Sarah know what she could see should have been self-explanatory and he didn't really want to talk his mom through it blow-by-blow , on the understanding she probably didn't want to hear it anyway.

For a distraction Rob lobbed the ice pack past Sarah across the hall. John's hands worked fast out of the front pocket of his hoodie and he caught it . Rob shot a glance at Cameron and she smiled politely back.

John tried to appear as exhausted and fragile as he could, pressing the pack to the side of his face" Mom I really need a shower,"he said. trying to edge towards the stairs. Sarah looked him over carefully again and then she turned to Cameron, still trying to disguise what she was feeling : she didn't like John fighting and didn't consider her son coming home looking like a walking RTA as any definable form of winning, but Sarah held her peace , Cameron appeared proud of John and she didn't want to spoil that for them. Suddenly she changed tack. " You know what?,Me and Rob are gonna ride over to check on Mr Berry, maybe do some cleaning for him , I've got to walk Darcy,he's getting real fat."

"We're going to Mr. Berry's?" Rob asked making like it was the first he'd heard of it . "Come on here, I got all that stuff in the kitchen sill to fix this afternoon, we can't go out " Rob checked John's reaction to see if John knew he was teasing him about he and Sarah staying in.

John and Cameron seized the moment to begin slipping up the stairs .

."Not so fast you two."Sarah spoke with her back to them as she was pulling on her biking boots.

Cameron and John froze in mid step, waiting for the expected' whilst you were out, I've rearranged upstairs so now you've both got separate rooms', talk from Sarah.

To their surprise Sarah actually said, "you don't eat that Gateaux, and don't drink any of the booze , they're for tonight."

John tried to hide any sign of relief on his face but he couldn't help the conspiratorial glance between him and Cameron."Do worry I'll make sure he doesn't touch it"said Cameron.

When Sarah heard John bedroom door shut Sarah studied Rob' for couple of seconds and lowered her voice almost to a whisper. "You know I really like that girl."

"So what's the matter?" Rob could read Sarah's expression as complex mix of relief and sadness.

" Rob I want to go out because I don't want reminding how ancient I am, so come on here let's go please."

Outside Sarah slipped her arm though Rob's as they walked. Out of nowhere she kissed him on his cheek and squeezed his bicep with hers.

"What was that for?" he asked having been slightly taken aback by her.

"For you taking care of all of us. Don't get used to it. ."She gave him a sideways look." You know after what we've been through; Cameron's so beautiful and elegant isn't she ,it's time something really good and decent happened to John.

Rob coughed like he was clearing his throat, "She is extremely elegant and beautiful ."

"So, what's up, you still pissed she ate your breakfast?" Sarah asked.

"Hmm nothin' like that'", he said, climbing on his bike, "Look Sarah, honestly I'm happy for them both, as far as I'm concerned they're an ideal match. "

"But?"

"But nothing," I was clearing my throat , it sometimes gets blocked like yours does okay."

"Don't you try to bullshit me big guy, I can tell when something's bothering you."

"It's nothin' ,nothin to do with Cameron and John anyway ... Sarah, will you get on the back of this bike and quit worrying about them . And…" Rob paused in mid speech before he started the bike .

"And?" She asked

"You're not ancient at all Sarah, that's pure bullshit."

"Will you just stop trying to soften me up here," Sarah yelled over his shoulder as he dropped the bike into gear to pull away.

If Sarah knew anything, it was when a 'situation' was 'bugging' Rob. It might take all weekend, but he'd got something he wanted to tell her.

* * *

John dropped the kit on his bedroom floor, sat down and stretched his arm out over the back of the settee.

Cameron was at the window watching Rob and Sarah leave. She turned and studied John's battered face. The way she folded her arms that reminded him of his mom . It also brought back who Cameron really was. The illusion of' girlfriend' faded out so much it hurt,but he did his best not to show it.

"So tell me about the fight ,what was it like for you?" She asked

John didn't want to sound to arrogant or big himself up, so he kept it short. " At the beginning of the fight I honestly thought he was going to kill me, I was going down .Then.. I don't remember much else except me putting him down, and everyone yelling and telling me I'd I won . Its like it's still l going on in my head ,scrambled so I can't put it in order yet, I don't think I'll sleep for a week."

Cameron put her hands on her hips and glared like she had at Alonzo . "Well that asshole didn't kill you, and you should feel totally correct about putting him down , but what it is Reese, I was watching you all the way through that fight, you're good , a natural fighter even ,but.," Cameron tilted her head like she was weighing up how to say what she wanted to tell him.

John cut in "You going to give me a lecture about boxing ?"

"Not exactly," she replied, " but while I'm around I thought I might do some training with you, do you mind me doing that?"

John shook his head, sure he said trying to imagine her face on the end of a sparring mitt ,how the hell could anyone bear to throw a punch at her, she was too beautiful, seemed too fragile to hit.

Cameron frowned like he'd hurt her feelings . "John You gave me that look."

"What look?"

"When I offer to train with my guys they give me exactly that look."

John thought about Dex. Dex was probably one of the toughest guys he'd met in his life." They're probably worried about hurting you,"John replied.

"Yeah right, they're a bunch of vegan peace protesters, " Cameron shot back sarcastically.

It was almost heartbreaking to think of Cameron out there, hyper intelligent not much older than himself , surrounded by killers and grunts with guns, and going on what little she'd hinted at when she'd talked about it, she was so alone.

"Well we could go Tuesday night, I got some spare kit that will fit you, I'll partner you."

"Thanks I'd really like to do that."Her eyes had come alive and sparkled for a second, then Cameron withdrew back into herself. It had been like he'd rolled out a mat with diamonds on it in front of her and it caught her momentarily off guard.

Cameron sat on the Settee about three inches away from him . They said nothing for a while, both stared at the wall in front of them. John found himself idly running his fingers over the fabric on the back of the settee behind her . When he realized what he'd been doing he stopped , hoping Cameron hadn't noticed.

She glanced sideways at him , made like she was swallowing, and what she was about to say was important ." This is where I'm supposed to give you the briefing. "

"Briefing?"

"Yeah it's the one about me being' out here' for two weeks, you never seeing me again afterwards , me keeping our relationship professional and you not getting emotionally attached to me .

"Don't worry, I won't," he said,knowing he was already lying through his teeth."

"That's okay then," Cameron turned to gaze back at the wall. She placed his hand on her shoulder in same casual way as if she been adjusting a strap on her clothing.

John brushed his fingers over her shoulder and upper arm. She didn't object , instead she closed the gap and leaned into to him so he could reach further, keeping her eyes fixed on the wall .

"What are you thinking now John?" She asked .

_I'm thinking it's totally fucking crap the way the military threat you. _John squeezed her shoulder. "Cameron I'm thinking you are coming out with us tonight , we are going share a meal ,mom's got some drinks in, and after that we all going to a club and we can stay out until whenever you want to come home . Rob will get us in the club, we've been before, It's rough , but it's got a dance floor in the back room. "

She smiled at his affection and thoughtfulness.

"You dancing?" Cameron inquired skeptically .

"I can box, so I can dance... sort of " , John replied defensively.

"You're not old enough to go in a club, John. We could get into trouble here"

"Most people from my class get into clubs, and you promised , no treating us like kids."

Cameron tilted her head from side to side working through a difficult decision . "Reese, my commanding officer will go nuclear hominoid if he finds out . I assured him we'd be playing chess until twenty-two hundred, and I'm a complete bitch you , putting you straight to bed, separate rooms ecetera. He made clear no way are you supposed to be enjoying any of this this."

"No way you're a bitch."

"I am," she replied.

"But you want to go out places whilst you're out here don't you?

"Maybe," Cameron replied, like she was deep in thought and she trailed her fingers in front of her as if she was examining a bracelet on her wrist ." Do you want to take me out ? " She asked.

"Yes of course I do. What is it with you?" said John firmly."

She seemed reluctant to tell him, " 'back there', I usually got a squad of my own people out with me, I'm not sure I'd be safe without them. They look after me"

"Hey, the club's not that rough, we'll all look out for you"

"Thanks, but I didn't mean that, places full of people ...after a few drinks I can get a bit, you know wild sometimes."

John thought how it seemed she was intending to do serious damage to Alonzo and his crew in the boxing club. Cameron was adorable but a little crazy , probably post traumatic stress, _like really, how can Cameron possibly be that dangerous to take out for one night_? . He decided she couldn't be that bad.

"Well whatever it is, I promise I'll personally look after you and keep you out of trouble. Do we have a deal?" John asked holding up his hand.

"Deal, thanks," she said and slapped his hand to seal the agreement .

Cameron suddenly became much more interested and enthusiastic about the idea. "So what's the name of this club you're taking me to?"

"Its called El Paraisio."

Cameron frowned skeptically. " John , you, are taking me, to Paradise?"

" Hey, don't get too excited. It's got three palm trees a concrete fountain in the lot , that's where drunks go an' throw up before they get in their taxis , and one side of the club gets packed out with bikers, but they know Rob so they're okay with us. What do you think?"

"You're kinda selling it but its the mental image of that fountain that's really swinging it for me I think," Cameron laughed, it was rapid fire but gentler . She fixed him with her brown eyes until he had to look away.

"Cameron do they take you out much , back at 'home'?"

"Sure , I get out . It's not like they lock me in an electrified cage '24/7.""

She sat up and nuzzled her nose against his cheek like cat, and quickly brushed his wrist with her hand and then she sat back down again

"Why do you do that?" He asked

Cameron shrugged,as if to say, 'why shouldn't I?'. "That's for thinking about me and considering me like you do and to say thank you John."She turned leaned back rested he weigh against him in a way that forced him to make himself more comfortable for her to rest against. "Really stiff here" , she said getting hold of and placing both his hands on to her shoulders .

Cameron's voice became a soft growl" John right there,, push in with your thumbs harder, you gotta feel for the knots, they say its supposed to be like kneading bread for you."

"No one's ever given you a massage before?"

"Nope,"Cameron shook her head . She pulled off her socks, put her bare feet up on the arm of the settee and shuffled around like she was getting more comfortable against him.

"Right there she," said and rolled her shoulder up to touch the side of her cheek. Hyper-alloy combat armour plates released and reset like a human joint cracking ,"ach" she whispered through her teeth .

John stopped and held his breath" Did I hurt you."

"No, course you didn't . Reese this is .., like ...,actually, it's like a chocolate fucking heaven mountain for me, alright , don't stop" Cameron closed her eyes and raked her top teeth over her bottom lip . She wiggled her toes as her feet tapped out a rhythm with her feet like she was listening to headphones, it was as if she was silently purring .

After a few minutes she suddenly said, "Stress causes this ."

Stress?" So that would be all the organizing helicopters out 'there' , you hunting down those bad guys in the desert ?

"You don't actually wanna know," Cameron shook her head slowly from side to side closing her eyes .

"Actually I would like to know."

Cameron sighed . She touched a finger to her temple . "Reese, I got a metal plate in here .Accident some years back: I ran into some bad shit and woke up with it , so last year, enemy sniper ,7.62 anti-material, thought he got lucky. I guess was the lucky one, round glanced clean off ,left a skid mark in it. I haven't had it fixed yet because I've been kept too busy . Having a dent in my head bugs me like hell when I think about it, that's stress, right?"

" John said looked over her forehead and temple for any sign of scarring."I can't tell its there, I don't think anyone could ."

"You want to feel it ?" Cameron asked, getting up and kneeling lengthways on the settee so she was facing him .

John reached out to brush her hair away, but before getting within an inch she shied her head away like John had done to her in the back seat of Ben's car. A mischievous smile spread over her face letting him know she was paying him back for having messed her around .

He tried again but she was of reach way before he could react . This time Cameron grabbed his hand in mid-air . rolled back and pulled him down on top of her. His face was directly over hers. Her hair spread luxuriously under her and her eyes were alive and warm.

John kissed the side of her temple ,almost expecting it was cold to the touch under his lips. When he looked again this time more closely he couldn't discern anything like a scar." Were you kidding me about having a metal plate?" he asked.

She shook her head without taking her eyes off him and gave him a fragile smile.

John stroked her hair around her temple.

Cameron kissed his bottom lip then pulled away to watch his reaction. She kissed him again, more fully but still so gently and this time held him down until his lungs gagged for oxygen. John pulled away gasping for air.

"Shame you can't breathe through your nose huh ?" She teased. She studied his face and touched her hand to his cheek, "John about that 'briefing' I had to give you,I'm not supposed to tell you this, there's a risk but_ you_ can choose to break those rules if you want to."


	12. Chapter 12

Hi!

I have re-rated to Starcrossed to 'T'. I thought about the content for a while and I don't think there is anything here that puts the story at M rating. I'm going to work back through the other chapters to make it clear that John has just turned eighteen at this moment, in case of any confusion.

I'm really busy at work so I can't promise to update regularly but I will try.

* * *

Cameron's usually harsh whisper softened to a drowsy affectionate drawl and she circled her palm over John's belly. "You awake Reese?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm awake ."John stretched and he pressed the backs of his legs and buttocks into the luxurious warmth of her body and rolled over so he was facing her. He slipped his arm under her shoulder and pulled her close. Cameron rested her head on his chest. John studied the outline of her face and traced his fingers over her jaw line. "Thank you," he said.

Cameron frowned and her brown eyes lost some of their gentleness. "Don't you ever do what you just did with a girl and say 'thank you'." She pressed her knee into the centre of his thigh, it was uncomfortable.

"What do I say?"

"Don't say it in words." John had disturbed the calm of the moment and it was gone. She raised the back of her hand to cover a yawn before she spoke. "We got to get up now, your mom and Rob will be back in about thirty minutes." Cameron propped herself up on her elbow and watched him. Her hair tussled across John's shoulder like a caress. "Your mom's going to know isn't she; she's got the sixth sense, right?"

John brushed a strand of it from her eyes. Cameron didn't blink. "I don't see what mom's got to get mad about. Soon as everyone else hit eighteen they were sneaking their boyfriends and girlfriends in. That's why Becks moved out, it was like 'you two, get a room."

Cameron traced her index finger down the centre of his chest to his abdominals, when it reached his middle she tapped in the groove in his abs like she was pondering. "But you're Sarah's precious son John." She said quietly, almost sarcastically.

John curled his hand around Cameron's finger to stop her tapping at the soft spot just above his belly button. It didn't hurt but it was soft torture. "It's not like that; mom can't wait to get me out of the door. She's signed me up to about nine universities already. I don't even know where I'm going next year, might be Anchorage. Me and the rest of the kids think we're going show for next Thanksgiving and there'll be another family living here, mom will have packed and left without saying a word, Nicaragua or somewhere. That's how she is. "

There was a long silence. John couldn't understand why Cameron was worrying so much about his mom. He swallowed and decided to approach the big question on his own mind. "Cameron, what's the chance of you getting leave and us seeing each other again?"

Without warning Cameron scraped her fingernails over his nipple .He jolted and groaned from the sudden rush of pleasure. She smiled, gloating a little at his response, _he was so sensitive_. "You enjoyed 'that much' you want me to spend my leave with you? I'm flattered, Reese, but err…." Her smile faded .Cameron shook her head. Her expression said _no_.

John searched her face for a hint of the slenderest possibility. "Is there any chance?"

"I'd like to, but the probability of me getting leave, or seeing you again is around zero, so we make the most whilst I'm around."

"Then how about I don't go to university and I sign up to your outfit instead?"

Cameron stared at him like his brains had just turned to bat shit. "You join my unit? No way," She pulled her finger out from his hand and gave him a withering look.

"Then I'll track you down," said John.

"No you won't. No one tracks us down," Cameron replied proudly, like he'd insulted her organisation's covert capacities by even suggesting a mere civilian could trace them.

"Give me one clue as to whom or what you are and I'll start from there."

"We're an interdisciplinary cross security forces military hybrid, ensuring strategic flexibility and response functionality .We gather and collate t local and global intelligence in a variety rapidly changing situations and challenging environments and are given means and full remit to respond to threat preventively and intervene pro-actively." It sounded like she was reading from the departmental mission statement, giving him no further information, rather expanding on what he already knew.

"That's a start." John said, none the wiser.

"You'd be wasting your time, and we're not recruiting for the foreseeable future." A sly smile formed on her lips, "although what you just did was kinda promising." She added.

John genuinely didn't understand what she meant, so she elaborated." You get me into bed, drill out half my brains and when I'm at my most vulnerable you attempt to extract highly 'sensitive' information, nice try." She clearly wasn't being serious; she was paying him a backhanded compliment. John was beginning to learn Cameron worked to her own version of the pleasure-pain principle when you got physical with her. It was her form of man training. "Come on John we got to get up, now." She pressed her knee into his thigh again.

"Ouch!" John sat up rubbed his leg, but it didn't really hurt.

"Take it Reese, serves you right for getting me into bed," she said as if she was ordering one of her team to nut up. Cameron ignored his discomfort and fished around beside the bed for her panties. She pulled them over her ankles, lifted her hips up and wriggled into them. She rolled off the bed picked up her T, pulled it on and stretched her arms. John could see the scratches on the back of her legs and ankles and cuts were gone. "'Heal fast don't I? Healthy diet, sun and sand, plenty of that in a desert", she said, as if reading his thoughts. She bent over and picked up his crusty blood-stained T he'd been fighting in. She held it at arm's length, and dropped it back to the floor. "Put this and the rest of your kit in the laundry, and John, before I get back you makes sure all used condoms are out of the bed and you've flushed them down the toilet. I'm goanna get something to eat now. I'll bring you another ice pack up, your eyes' a mess." "_Yes mam_," John thought to himself.

John flopped back on the mattress and stared at the ceiling. _She was the most mind-blowing event in his life_. It was as if one of Rob's acquaintances had handed him the keys to a race-tuned supercharged Harley and said" hey kid, take this baby out on the highway for an hour or two will you". In bed Cameron was 'mental', she had absolutely zero inhibitions and certain points in their lovemaking John thought she was trying to kill him with sex. He hadn't woken up afterwards, he'd regained consciousness. _Okay, think about this John, you cannot possibly not see this woman again._

Cameron, or rather Col. Phillips called from the bottom of the stairs. "Reese, get up _now_ will ya !"

"Okay I'm up," John called back. He forced his bare feet onto the bedroom carpet and stood upright. He carried the used condoms though to the washroom , filled them at the tap tied the knots and aimed them like water bombs one at a time , to ensure exactly the right angle of entry, watching with satisfaction as they splashed into the water and travelled around the bend under their own momentum. He flushed the handle to make doubly sure they were away.

John checked his back over this shoulder in the mirror. To add to today's collection of injuries there were new scratches on his back and a purple-black bite mark bruise in the muscle above his collar-bone. John examined his nose. It looked pretty good and straight, but his right eye was still swollen. He pulled a wad of tissue off the roll and blew. One nostril was still blocked. Watery, snotty blood-shot out of the other hurting like toothache in his face when he did it.

He checked himself in the mirror again. He'd felt grown up lying with Cameron and he expected to appear how he felt; older, but he didn't. He was the same usual self but with a black eye. _What age was Cameron even?_ John figured she had to be in her mid to late twenties to have made the rank of Colonel. She was one of those women who looked perpetually younger than they were or at least appeared indeterminable in age.

_Jeez this was totally insane. Rocked his world?_ It had been like a Zen-Jedi realization in which his entire universe having been the wrong way up all his life suddenly cosmically readjusted itself.

John picked up his dirty boxing gear and held bundle in his arms. He was about to take it to the laundry room when his cell rang. He'd got two missed calls from the number and instantly felt a pang of guilt He sat on his bed with his back to the door facing the window. He'd promised to call her after the fight, to let her know the result and forgotten all about it. John glanced over his shoulder towards his bedroom door. Cameron would be downstairs for a couple of minutes, so against his better judgement he returned her call.

"You didn't call me, I got worried". Kat sounded hurt and accusing, like him calling her meant more he'd realized.

John tried to sound enthusiastic about talking, "I wanted to call you but I got back here, lay down and fell asleep, it was so exhausting."

"So did you win?" She asked.

"Yeah third round, KO'd him."

She sounded like she'd lightened up. "Brilliant, I knew you would! Mom's gone over to Russ's for the weekend, so, I was wondering if you wanted to sleep over tonight?"

John coughed trying to sound pitiful. "Err no, I'm pretty busted up now and I promised go to Beck's for a meal and I don't think I can keep upright that long. Feels like I've been run over by a truck." He coughed to try to emphasize the shape he was exaggerating about being in.

There was pause. "John, why are you whispering?" Kat asked.

He could sense Kat's suspicions were rising and he thought fast. "I got punched in throat, so I can't talk much." John glanced over his shoulder again. Cameron would be back upstairs soon. He tried to close the conversation down before she did, but Kat wasn't that easily dissuaded.

"I could come pick you up at say seven-thirty, we could go straight to bed, watch a movie, I got the Russian version of Solaris from a charity shop this week ."

"No, not tonight"-John groaned lightly and sighed, like it hurt to make the slightest bodily movement.

"Fall asleep if you want, I won't wake you up, promise," she said, teasingly.

"Kat I don't good . Maybe I can see you at chess, Thursday? I'll have recovered by then. "John held his breath and waited for her reply. _Please be too busy for Thursday night_, he said to himself with a rising sense of desperation.

There was another long pause, "sure see you at chess" Kat replied, disappointed.

John didn't feel right doing this to her but he didn't see he had a choice. "Look I'm really sorry Kat, normally I would over at your place like _now_, but I can't, I need the rest."

"I'll have to get into my big comfortable double bed watch that movie with ."

Mr Snoogles was Kat's two foot high teddy bear. John really tried to make he'd been tempted by the last image of her in bed. "That's not fair, but I'll see you Thursday, yeah?"

"See you there John." Kat finally hung up. John held the cell in his hand .He'd just made it in time; Cameron would be upstairs in seconds.

John slowly and guiltily laid the cell down on the chair next to the bed and leaned forward resting his elbows on his knees. Had Kat been reading the social network sites? Had she found out about Cameron? It wasn't like he and Kat were going out, but he didn't want to hurt her. What excuse was he going to give her on Thursday?

John turned around to glance over his shoulder again and nearly jumped out of his skin. Cameron was sitting on his bed behind him, legs crossed with a bowl in her lap. The ice pack next her. In the bowl was large block of vanilla ice cream coated with chocolate sprinkle and two spoons. She raised her eyebrows ,frowned ,tilted her head slightly to the side enough to make her hair fall away from the side of her face and lightly rested her chin on the back of her hand . She didn't blink or take her eyes off him.

John took a couple of deep breaths to steady himself. He had no idea how she'd got back into bed without him realizing or how long she'd been sitting there listening. "So who's that?" She asked, after what had seemed like ages.

John coughed to clear his throat and decided to roll with it. No point in lying to her. "That was Kat." You know when we first got back, you asked if I had a girlfriend?"

"I said due to the state of the room I inferred you hadn't." Cameron raised her eyebrows for him to continue.

"Exactly, she doesn't go to Esperanza, she's a friend from the chess club, lives right out on Pinewood Valley Road. "

So, 'if she's just a friend,' why was she inviting you over to stay the night at her house whilst her mom's staying with whom I assume is her boyfriend for the weekend?"

John ran his hand through his hair. "You heard all that?"

"I can hear a grenade pin drop at a hundred yards apparently" she said with a false smile imitating the bright gushing girly tone Kat had spoken to him with during part of the call.

"You heard that as well?"

"It's one of the things Dex says about me when he thinks I'm not listening. Don't let him know I know .Want some of this?" Cameron dug out a chunk of vanilla ice cream and handed John a spoonful.

John shoved it in his mouth a little too quickly and tried to speak at the same time. "It's not what you think," he managed to say.

"It's not like I own you John , so why don't go over? I could park a couple of guys outside to make sure you were safe."

John nearly choked as he swallowed the ice cream. "I want to be with you," he protested.

Cameron gave him a look that said _makes sense_,_ why the hell wouldn't you? "_Tell me about Kat," she asked with a rather too relaxed and easy tone.

"Actually, it's sad," replied John.

"Breaking my heart already," Cameron interrupted his flow, shooting him a warning glance that she wasn't big on sympathy.

John continued, "Kat's a year older than me. We'd been playing chess together for a couple of years at the club. She had a boyfriend or rather boyfriends. We'd talk about them. She was really good-looking, intelligent and her boyfriend, wasn't into chess. Last February she found out she had cancer, 70% chance she was going to die. She dropped out of college, boyfriend dumped her. She did Chemo, her hair fell out, and she went down to four and a half stone. I used to go and see her once a week and play chess at her place. She's in remission now, on steroids. Still looks like a 'rex', but her hair's grown back and she putting weight back on. She might go back to college next term."

Cameron nodded gravely like she was summing up his case. "So not only did you take advantage of me, you take advantage of this poor girl, whom you've had the hots for two years who was in such a weakened physical state and emotionally vulnerable she was unable to resist your advances?" Cameron took the empty spoon out of his fingers refilled it and handed it back to him. She was messing with him but being serious at the same time.

"I think Kat wanted to see if she could you know, 'still', and maybe get her confidence back." That was the truth, but it had been a 'thanks for being there for me' sort thing which John had thought was a one off at the time.

"So you had sex with her?"

"Yeah, once, she was my first"

Cameron scrutinized him. _How the hell did she know he wasn't telling the truth_? John thought. "Well twice, same night, I didn't really know what to do. It was totally different with you, it was _better_."

Cameron gave 'that 'shrug again, _like of course it would b better_. "So is Kat going to get jealous when she finds out about me?"

"No, no Kat's not like that at all." _Wasn't she? _John didn't have a clue, he'd had never been in this situation before_, _strung out between two women

"That's okay then," Cameron replied, like it was nothing.

John held his spoon up. This wasn't fair; it wasn't an interrogation and it was his turn to speak. "So, you going to tell me about this guy you slept with?"

"Doesn't want to see me again," Cameron answered flatly, tying to head off any further questions.

John wasn't deterred and pressed on. Cameron put her spoon down in the bowl and stopped eating ice cream. He could see the hurt in her eyes. "Okay, I have never told anyone this before, a few years back I was assigned a long-term protection detail with him. We sort of fell into a relationship. I loved him John and he loved me . I nearly killed him, by mistake. "

"What!?" John stared at her incredulously.

Cameron voice was calm and professional but her bottom lip quivered as she spoke. "It was a dangerous situation and it was an understandable error on my part to make in those circumstances. He…, he sent me away."

John reached across and took hold of her hand and thought for a moment. "Cameron, you ever considered quitting, taking a normal job?"

She glanced to the side and back at him. "I can't, besides what else am I going to do? "

"Stay here with me until you decide." John sounded like he totally meant it.

She smiled. "John that's unbelievably kind, but I can't, I really can't."

John knew Cameron appeared like she was considering it, but probably out of politeness, and so as not to sound condescending to him. "Why can't you?" he asked.

She shook her head and laughed gently at his innocence and enthusiasm. "What hell am I doing even having this conversation?" She slapped him playfully on the arm, "come on Reese your mom's going to be back soon, so let's get straightened up at least make it look like we haven't trying to break your bed. Clothes- laundry, now, "she said, pointing at the pile of crusty boxing gear that had never moved when she asked the first time. John picked up the bundle. When he came back in the room she was leaning her shoulder against the frame of the bedroom window , arms folded. She didn't turn to look at him. He thought Cameron might have been cross with him, maybe about not being upfront about Kat, but she wasn't, she'd been thinking deeply. "You meant what you said about me staying here?" she asked.

"Yes I did," he replied.

Cameron kept on looking out of the window and didn't give any sign of what her answer might have been. They could hear Rob's Harley turning the corner at the end of the road.


	13. Chapter 13

_I wanted to see if I could write a novel length chapter. The amount of concentration required is huge, much more than I imagined and I need to thank Justjoe for doing some massive editing work on this chapter and cutting it down to size and getting some of the phrasing right ._

_I'd like to know what you make of a northern British Terminator 'on an exchange' to TC from the SAS, who isn't exactly impressed by John's current behaviour towards her 'half-sister.' _

_Please let me know what you think about her and the other OC's ._

* * *

Zeppelin's Achilles Last Stand assaulted everyone on the dance floor, almost mocking their attempts to keep up with the beat. Signalling their defeat, the girls decided to head into the bar .They were red-faced and sweating .A curl of damp hair stuck across Cameron's forehead. She took hold of the neckline of her T between her forefinger and thumb and tugged and shook it so the damp fabric which been clinging to her body hung loose. It looked like all the girls had stepped out of a sauna. Angelique fanned her face with her hand. "We need beer," she said and stood on tiptoes so she could see over the bikers bunched around in the middle of the room. As the girls picked their way through them Chelsea was limping a little and she pointed to her foot. "I got blisters. You're wearing us out here Cameron, where did you learn to dance like that?"

"Didn't have much else to do," Cameron replied.

Becky gestured with her thumb over her shoulder back towards the dance room where John and Ben were, she put her hand on Cameron's shoulder , leaned in and spoke into her ear "I don't know why they listen to this stuff, it sounds like a construction site." Cameron nodded understandingly. "We made John wear earphones at Sarah's, don't take any shit about his music from him," said Becky.

"Thanks for the tip." Cameron said.

Rob and one of his acquaintances were standing at the far end of the bar. He was a big half-Indian biker who looked like he could have spent his life breaking up roads with a jack hammer. He wore two hearing aids and Rob was talking to him in sign language. It all looked casual but the moment Rob spotted Cameron and the girls his line of sight tracked along the bar and stopped like a red laser dot dead centre in the back of a bulky man sitting at the bar. He wearing a calfskin leather jacket and there was a thick gold chain around his neck. He was shoving bar snacks into his mouth with irritable snappy movements and he seemed totally out of place in the club. Cameron could make out a V of muscle and a weight-lifter's neck under the rolls of fat which his jacket rode up on like a second skin. Cameron caught Chelsea's arm, "Who's that? Rob just pointed him out". The girls stood still and exchanged anxious glances. "Shit," whispered Becky. "So who is he?" Asked Cameron.

Chelsea looked down at her feet and then back into Cameron's eyes, she was obviously scared "His name's Vincent. He works for Tony Alonzo's brother, Remmi. He collects debts, sorts stuff out for them and seriously you don't want to go anywhere near him, he's a fuckin' animal."

Cameron ran her fingers over her chin for a second or two like she was deliberating. "Does he normally drink here?"

"No, never," replied Angelique.

"I'll deal with him," Cameron said and stepped towards the bar. "Cam, wait. " Angelique tried to position herself between Cameron and Vincent but Cameron got into the space first. She casually leant on the bar as if Vincent wasn't there .The three girls stood behind her, they were nervous and defensive. Vincent must have been aware of them, but he carried on eating from the snacks bowls and ignoring them.

"What can I get you," the waitress asked Cameron. "I'd like six…" Cameron was about to say 'six Budweiser please, 'but Vincent cut in before she'd finished speaking. "I want another Perroni," he said aggressively and waved his unfinished bottle at the waitress. "I'm serving this lady first" the waitress said firmly. She was in her forties and surrounded by bikers she knew and clearly she didn't take kindly to being ordered around by punks like Vincent in their bar. She smiled at Cameron, "now what was it again sweetheart? "

Vincent shrugged and took a sip of his beer. He sighed and turned around on the bar stool so he was facing the girls and rested his cheek in his thick pudgy hand. His face was acne-scarred and his hair was unconvincing dyed black making it look like a back-combed greasy toupee. He was the kind of pig-ugly man who got off on using bad looks and muscle to bully and humiliate women. "You know your problem? You got no manners 'sweetheart'. None you girls have." Vincent said and his gaze wandered over the four girls making it obvious he was mentally undressing them and he didn't care they knew what was happening in his imagination. Chelsea put her hand to her mouth and pulled a face as if she was about to spew.

Cameron slowly turned her head until she locked eyes with Vincent. "What do you want?" Cameron demanded. When she spoke it was sudden and with such force the effect on him was like a gunshot in the bar. Vincent struggled for a moment to regain his self-control." You're John Reese's new girlfriend right? " he asked. Cameron didn't answer and carried on glaring into his face. Vincent's top lip and cheek quivered slightly and twitched as if she'd hit a raw nerve. He'd started sweating.

Vincent's talent was an acute instinct for rooting out a person's weakness. He spoke over Cameron's shoulder and sneered. "Hey Chelsea, " he said, "heard you were this wild kid hanging out with the West Street Boys a few years back . Still got your habit? I can sort you out if you have."

Chelsea eyed Vincent with utter , cold contempt. Vincent chuckled; he'd got the rise he wanted and he spoke as if he was talking down to an unreasonable child." Now why are you acting like that huh, Chelsea? We're just going over old times here aren't we?"

"Why shouldn't she act like that you fuckin' pig?" said Angelique pushing past Becky and stepping up to Vincent. Vincent didn't see Cameron's hand; she'd put behind her , palm pushing against the flat of Angelique's stomach to say 'keep out of it'.

"I asked you what you wanted," Cameron said in a unnervingly calm voice.

"At last. You're the clever girl." Vincent said and thinking he'd got her around Vincent dropped the intimidation act and he became more business-like. "You boyfriend injured my client's brother. Tony's a nice kid. This morning John fractured Tony's jaw, and knocked out his tooth. So there's dental fees, X rays, there's an implant , apparently they're going to drill out the broken tooth and screw a new tooth in , titanium screws. It's expensive treatment; costs about four thousand dollars. That's why I want to talk to John, I'm sure we can come to an arrangement."

Cameron took a mouthful of beer and nodded like she was weighing up Vincent's proposition as if it were half reasonable.

Becky put her arm around Chelsea, she was really upset and shaking. "It was a boxing match Vincent. Tony went crazy on John, he bust his nose." Becky said.

Vincent ignored Becky and looked around the bar. "So where's John? "Cameron's arm lashed out and she reached inside his Jacket. Her hand moved quickly and lightly over his chest and neck. She struck into his flab with her fingertips, not to kill, only enough to stun him for a few seconds. There was a click then she withdrew her hand and went back to resting on the bar as she had been before and dispassionately watched Vincent as his face turned purple and he gasped for air .He tried to stand, but Cameron had pinned him with his switch blade through his jacket to the wooden bar. When he looked down to see what it was, Cameron passed the cell she'd picked from Vincent's inside pocket to Angelique and she slipped it behind her back.

Vincent grabbed hold of the handle of the blade and yanked it out and he stood up. Cameron's arm shot out again and she put her finger over his heart and tweaked his shirt button like she was about to rip it off with her fingernail. "You' better go home now Vincent, you look like you're about to have a cardiac" she said, without the slightest hint of stress in her voice. Vincent attempted to snatch her wrist but Cameron's hand was resting on the bar again before he'd even started to raise his arm and Vincent's fingers closed on air. She'd moved like a ghost.

Vincent tried to recover some semblance of confidence. "Maybe when you're not here I'll talk to John. Don't worry, I'll come back," he said threateningly and tried to hand her a business card.

Cameron snatched hold of it, screwed it up and dropped it . Her face hardened into a she-devil's and her eyes froze over with inhuman hatred and she hissed what she had to say through clenched teeth. "You come back here tonight or go visiting anyone's houses you'd better turn up with fucking army, because I'm not going anywhere, ever, _buddy!"_

Vincent stood up, straightened his jacket and tried to walk out of the bar with as much dignity as he could gather. Before the girls spoke again they waited until they Vincent sped off squealing his tyres.

Cameron finished her call. She put her cell in her jacket pocket and rested her arms on the rail at the front of the veranda. Her dark hair flowed over her shoulders her form effortlessly blended with the shadows and the sparkling dark prism of the starlit horizon. Behind her John and his friends were sitting around the tables under a trellis-bower of flowering jasmine. Candles flickered on the table tops and swirling eclipse of moths frantically mobbed the electric lights over their heads. The row of bikes parked in the lot 'pinked' as their engines cooled and the smell of hot oil and heated metal rose up and mingled with the heavy scents of jasmine flowers and marijuana smoke.

"Cameron." Becky had got up from the table and brought Cameron's beer over to her . She was standing behind her. Cameron pretended to have been jolted out of her thoughts by the sound of Becky's voice. Becky handed Cameron her bottle of Bud and stood next to her, leaning against the rail like Cameron was, close enough so their shoulders were touching.

"What are doing?" Becky asked.

"Waiting for my buddies to show, I called them up" replied Cameron. "Have you told John and Ben about Vincent?" Cameron could see Becky was uneasy about Vincent's visit. "Not yet," said Becky.

Chelsea and Angelique got up and came over to join them. Although Chelsea had kept it together sitting with the boys she was so angry so freaked out by Vincent she was on the point of tears. "Cameron, look what he said about me that was before we lived at Sarah's, I'm going to UCLA, I am going to do medical degree. I wasn't lying to you."

"Hey," Cameron took hold of her hand, and pulled her into her body so Chelsea's head rested against her shoulder." I know you weren't lying." Cameron shook her head and smiled gently. "I'm not exactly an angel myself, but I'm working on it . I've run into plenty of bastards like Vincent in my time. They find your weakness and they go for it, they try and make you feel like a piece of crap on the bottom of a shoe. You gotta not let them inside your head. "

Angelique handed Cameron the joint she'd been smoking and they watched for her reaction. As Cameron took a deep drag the glowing ember reflected as two red dots in her pupils. She spoke on the exhale. "I haven't exactly been straight with you about who I am." She said quietly.

"You're older than John aren't you? We guessed that," said Angelique.

"Yeah I am older than John" replied Cameron, like it didn't or shouldn't matter," but that's not that I was going to try to explain to you."

Becky appeared totally distraught and the girls glanced anxiously at each other. "We all saw what you did in there, so now you're going to tell us you're an undercover cop, you know; just as we thought something right was happing for once with John and all of us."

Cameron took another drag and paused to hold the smoke in before she replied, her brows v'd into a scowl of confusion . " I' wasn't going tell you that."", Thank god for that," Becky said. The girl's faces lit up with relief and delight. Cameron shook her head. "Actually Vincent just ran into totally the wrong people to pick a fight with, This is who I am." Cameron reached inside her jacket and pulled out her wallet and flashed a military ID card. The girls passed it around and back to Cameron .

"Cameron, what's it like in the Marines?" whispered Becky. Cameron took another drag of the joint and seemed to think deeply for a few seconds as how to answer her. "One big fucking desert," Cameron finally replied, sighing out her words. She didn't need to elaborate because her expression told the full story, "and for the first time in my life I honestly don't know what to do," she said quietly.

"You're in love with John aren't you," said Chelsea. The girls turned all their attention to Cameron and waited for her reply.

She appeared as if she was about to answer, instead she swallowed and changed tack. "You worried about Vincent?" She held up the roach-end of the joint "don't be," she said, before she dropped it to the floor and ground it out under the heel of her boot. She turned and walked back to the tables where John and Ben were sprawling on the benches. They sat up when he saw her. She'd got the 'warpath' look about her like Sarah had when she was angry. Cameron and the girls sat down and explained about what had happened with Vincent in the bar, and that Cameron called over some buddies who were on leave in LA in case anything was going to kick-off .

A 600 Suzuki Bandit pulled up in the lot and the rider parked a little distance away from the row of Harleys. The rider and her passenger dismounted and took off their helmets. She was blonde and she walked with the same agile, dancing step as Cameron.

When they got to the tables John saw the guy she was with had part of his left ear was missing and under his short stubble hair there was a vertical scar running from the top of his skull down to his forehead. It looked as if someone had tried to split his head open like a coconut. He was all lean muscle and sinew like the hind legs of a pit bull. John had the curious sensation of déjà vu, like he'd met him before.

The girl was mixed race, her hair was frizzy blonde, she had a light Asian complexion and blue, almond-shaped eyes." I'm Delany, this is Hitch," she said and looked to John almost if she was asking for permission to join them. She'd spoken a northern British accent with a guttural Pakistani inflection. John nodded. Hitch glanced over Ben and the girls and sort of mumbled 'hi' before he nervously sat down next to John .When he did he didn't seem to know what to say next and uncomfortably fidgeted with his hands. Delany was the opposite. She exuded a kind of serene confidence ,it wasn't arrogance but maybe it was like she'd been brought up to think she was someone's little Arabian princess before real life hit her and this what climbed out of the wreckage.

"Err, do you want a beer?" John asked Hitch. Hitched looked to Cameron first and then Delany to check their reaction. They both nodded. "Yeah I want a beer," Hitch replied, like it was all he'd been dreaming of for months. "Sol, or Bud?" asked John as he was about to get up. "Hitch drinks Bud," said Delany." If you're going to the bar I'll come with you, I'm buying," she added quickly, and got on her feet in a microsecond.

As John was stepping away Cameron caught hold of his arm and pulled him down so his ear was close to her mouth. "Don't agree to anything strategic if she asks please, not before its run by me first."

"What do you mean strategic?" asked John,

"I mean like what we do with Alonzo."

"Oh," said John.

When they got to the door John held it open for Delany, she stopped and eyeballed him ." Before you ask about me and Cameron? We're not related by birth, so don't ask , okay," she said seriously and carried on through to the short corridor that led to the bar. It was obviously a bone of contention between the two girls. John held his hands up," I honestly wasn't going to ask," he said as she brushed past him. "That's okay then," she replied, exactly like Cameron did.

When they got inside the hallway there was only the two of them and she stood facing him as she scanned him from head to toe. "So you're John Reese, you know Cameron hasn't shut up talking about you since she found you.". What Delany had just told him about Cameron made John's heart leap ,the information was of an order of magnitude of an astronomer discovering a new star system, although he tried not to show it.

Delany folded her arms and appeared cross with him. "Okay, John this how it is: we were all on this mental, long operation, six months in a desert, interesting as watching mud crack. This asshole General who's our CO got this mad idea that maybe your maths teacher is an international terrorist, which he obviously is not , and we decided we're not going to even try telling this General your maths teacher is just a normal, ordinary guy , at least until Cameron files her final report, so our CO, in a fit of paranoia, pulls us off the Op we were on and he sends us over here to LA ,but it's basically it's two weeks R&R for us and were thinking 'hey you know, we can actually buy swimwear and go to a beach, hit the bars , maybe eat a fifty thousand calories, get ourselves up to a normal BMI, etcetera, now do you get it John?'" Delany paused and cocked her head get exactly like Cameron and waited until John nodded that he understood "…_so what the fuck are you doing falling out with the Mafia_?" Delany snapped at him.

"I didn't mean to, but I will sort it out ," said John, taken aback. She was like Cameron or one of the girls chewing on him.

"Look," Delany continued in a softer voice, "You're damn lucky she hasn't dropped a fully loaded MQ9 through your 'mate'-Alonzo's roof. " Delany tapped the side of her temple, "Cols. still out there in her head and you've got to be so fucking careful… do you understand?"

"What! " John looked at her incredulously.

Delany seemed to weigh things for a moment then she wrinkled her nose and smiled wryly at him, pleased she'd tricked him for a second or two, (exactly like Cameron did) "Well Cameron probably wouldn't go that far, she's not like a complete psycho or anything, but you hear what I saying don't you? John, you of all people, you should know better, you've got responsibilities and you need to be more careful with her. It's not all about you, _mate_."

"What do you mean me of 'all people' and I've 'got responsibilities'?" asked John completely lost by what Delany was telling him.

"Ah, forget I even said that, let's get the drinks now." She opened the inner door to the bar and scanned around." Jeez it's full of fuckin' ZZ Tops, it's like a Mosque with beer pumps and rock music," Delany said, deliberately emphasizing the Pakistani element to her British accent. If she'd spoken the couple of decibels louder the bikers nearest John would have heard what she'd said. Delany checked John's reaction and grinned mischievously at the look on his face. She slapped him on the shoulder and said, "come on, I'll try not to embarrass you, too much."

Rob came over as John and Delany were waiting to be served at the bar. When she saw him, Delany pointed the tip of her boot towards him and tapped the floor. She looked Rob up and down like a woman assuming he was going to make a pass at her. "Err, Delany, this is Rob, my mom's boyfriend." John said, aware of the tension.

The two terminators nodded and very briefly , carefully shook hands and stared at each other. "So what happened to you?" Delany asked, totally matter of fact, without a trace of politeness or subtlety.

John had said it so many times the phrase smoothly rolled off his tongue, "Rob got injured in the first Gulf War." Delany scowled, like she didn't quite understand, so Rob said, "I got transferred to Engineering and when I finished up I decided to live out here." She was still scowling like she didn't believe the pair of them, so John went on to explain, "Rob's makes specialist prosthetics for other disabled Vets and kids with disabilities, he's also a volunteer counsellor in schools for disabled children and young people. " John said proudly.

"You're fucking kidding me," Delany replied.

"No I'm not," John protested. He was getting more than a little uncomfortable with her attitude to Rob.

Delany held her hand up," okay, I'm sorry," and she smiled like Cameron did when she wanted something and she suddenly became very cute," I'd like a job like Rob's if I ever get out , what do you think John?" Before John had even thought about it Rob coughed and cut in changing the subject, "you're all staying at my place tonight aren't you John?"

"We are," John replied, and checked he'd got the gate keys in his jacket pocket. "Well, I'd better be getting back to Sarah's, nice to meet you Delany," Rob gave her a quick hard look before he went to over say goodnight to his Indian friend.

The waitress came over to serve them. Delany smiled again and ordered another round of Buds. She leaned close to John and spoke so close to his face he could feel her breath on his cheek. John became wary she was obviously on a charm offensive. "So what it is John, remember that stupidly long mental op I was telling you about, the one that up- his-arse General put our team on for six months?" John nodded. " Well, " Delany continued," Hitch has been a really good mate all the way and I promised him a date if we got through it , but the thing is, there's a lot of prejudice 'out there' , so that's why he is like his is in public with me." John thought she must be talking about her being mixed race and probably coming from a Muslim background or maybe she was describing certain attitudes to the military where she came from , or perhaps a combination of those things. "I mean you don't think it's wrong we should be together do you?" asked Delany.

"No of course not," said John.

"That's great, thanks and I won't forget it ," Delany rewarded him with a magnificent smile .It was as if she was an exotic 'jinn' and he'd just used up his last wish to set her free.

When they got back outside, Delany sat next to Hitch and shuffled up against him. She looked across at how Becky and Ben and John and Cameron were sitting together. She nudged Hitch and glanced down at her waist. Hitch got the message and he cautiously put his arm behind Delany's back and she leaned into it. Delany sat up shook her hair so it fell back over shoulders. Delany handed Cameron her drink. "Thank you Yasmin," Cameron said, using Delany's first name for the first time,ever.

* * *

Behind Rob's shack was the original barn, complete with a tin roof and an ancient gas pump. Behind the barn there was an electricity substation with enough high voltage to make any Terminator smile. It routed power to the factories in the industrial park which bordered the eastern side of Rob's farm and the suburb on the west. Rob's nearest non-industrial neighbour was a self-described stud farmer whose ranch was two and a half miles away. Apart from the almost inaudible humming from the substation and the faint sound of the freeway, Rob's acreage was, as he once said himself, 'very quiet.'

When they were younger Sarah would often bring over the kids when she wanted them 'out of her hair'. The barn became a sort of barracks, complete with green nylon ex-army sleeping bags. Of course everyone loved washing the smell of barbeques, wood smoke and stale sweat in the creek the following morning.

The barn was lit by an old hurricane lamp which hung from a metal spike in a timber post. Delany's face was bathed in its soft warm light. "So you used to spend the night out here when you were kids? What did you do?" As she was speaking Hitch grunted. He shifted onto his side and pulled the top of the roll around his head .It was nearly two-thirty. Delany was wide awake and having become fascinated by the slightest detail of 'the kid's' lives, it didn't seem like there was any chance she was going to shut down soon.

"We still stay out here some weekends," said John sleepily. He was lying on his back using his jacket as a pillow. Cameron lay on her side next to him .She was resting her head on his shoulder with her arm across his chest. Her fingers traced the outline of his ribs through the fabric of the roll. John been watching the stars through the opening above the door way. Cameron glanced around at the others, they were tired. She shook John, "come let's put the light out, huh." Ben raised his hand in agreement and let it gently flop back down onto Beck's shoulder. There was a chorus of tired, sighed-out approval.

John got up and padded barefoot across barn floor. He turned the screw on the side of the lamp until the flame behind the glass flickered and went out. The smouldering wick gave off a whiff of paraffin gas which the breeze sifting in through the slats dispersed, bringing in the smell of horses and dew-softened meadow grass. The air tasted clear and cool like you could drink it. Beside the faintest noise of the freeway in the distance it was massively silent.

John got back into the sleeping bag and snuggled up against Cameron. She put both her arms around him and pulled him onto her chest and he lay there with his head rising and falling with her breathing. He'd always dreamt of bringing the right girl out here. "Is your arm going to fall asleep?" John whispered. "Roll me off if it does." Cameron gave him a slight push with her hand as if she was experimenting with turning him over.

John was starting to understand Cameron's way. Outwardly she could be as subtle and blunt as a house brick but there was raw tenderness and deep thoughtfulness behind all her actions towards him and the people she called friends, which was contrary to how she spoke and initially came across. She wasn't performing consciously, or trying to be 'nice' in front of an audience, it was so uncontrived and natural she wasn't aware of it. It was one of the contradictory things he had begun to love about her.

John could sense Delany was irritating Cameron in the way Becky irritated her older sister Chelsea, but it was balanced within the framework of spite, squabbling, envies and the love that sisters cannot see they have for each other. John reached up and stroked Cameron's forearm, he'd noticed it put her at ease and calmed her.

John considered Hitch and Delany: They were opposites; Beauty and the Beast. Despite his appearance, Hitch was shy, quiet, intelligent and unnaturally calm. When he spoke his voice was so soft you had to really listen to follow what he was saying. In the bar Delany had done most of the talking for him, speaking brashly over the bar-chatter and background music like she was translating what Hitch as saying into their language.

John could see what Cameron meant when she said the other Marines kidded her and Del about being related to her by birth. If you didn't know they were unrelated Delany could be taken for Cameron's (slightly) 'dippy little half-sister'. Del had the same bluntness and natural innocence but without Cameron's age and depth of life experience.

She often didn't get some social cues or phrases which John had seen Hitch patiently explaining to her. They'd put it down to Delany being a Brit, but John watched how Delany played on it, knowing Hitch enjoyed 'explaining'. It was the same kind of intimacy like when she'd asked him to help her undoing a stiff zip on her jacket pocket which she'd pretended couldn't manage to unfasten by herself.

Delany used her energy and sociability to hide what she didn't grasp, turning it into a joke but at the same time shielding Hitch with an aura of confidence and outgoingness. She might have seemed interested in the trivial, but like Cameron, she could go from friendly and 'normal' to hardened soldier in less than a second.

John could make out Delany in the semi-darkness. She was sitting up with her back against a timber post; her outline was cut in half by a diagonal shaft of moonlight .John could see the fluttering shadow of a moth on the post above her head. Her legs were covered by the sleeping bag and she'd wrapped one of her arms around her knees, the other was outstretched along Hitch's side like he was an armrest. Her eyes were wide open, showing no signs of fatigue.

They'd first assumed Delany wasn't getting the message that everyone wanted to go to sleep, but John realized it meant more than that to her. She so valued her free time, especially with Hitch and she was like a kid who wanted to play out for a precious extra hour on the beach. It was a defiance, not ill-intended, but it was irritating Cameron none the less.

"Hey Del," John whispered.

"Hmm?" Delaney's shoulders went down on their haunches and her head sloped forward and down like a big cat's as she fixed her attention on him.

John smiled, he was getting used to it. "You know when we were kids, before we got to sleep we used to tell stories. You can either do gruesome or scary but you've got to lie down first and if it's really scary or gruesome you have cuddle up to the person next to you," John said.

A murmur of agreement passed around the barn, "go on Del," said Angelique, "bet you've got some stories from the places you've been?"

"Can I tell a gruesome story?" Delany made out she was asking innocently.

Cameron sighed and lapsed into Col. Phillips," John, _please, _do not encourage her." It was good natured, but there was a bit of grittiness in her manner.

"Del, do you think maybe you will get to sleep if we let you tell a story?" asked Chelsea, hinting it would be _a very good idea_ if she did."Hmm … maybe," Delany group sat up and propped themselves on their elbows. Hitch's head appeared out of his sleeping bag.

"Err John, I wouldn't advise this," Cameron whispered.

"No it's okay, I think we want to hear it," John replied, to another murmur of approval.

"Then I think …" Del spoke, like she was carefully deliberating what to choose from a menu,"… I will tell you the story of when Delta Patrol found what was left of The Area Administrator's wife. What do you think? "She'd directed question at John, almost like she was like requesting his permission, in the slightly odd way Cameron and Del had when they weren't certain of what to do.

"Is that a good idea?" asked John. Cameron sighed," Not really," and then she spoke up, with a somewhat exasperated tone in her voice," okay everyone listen please, this is not to be repeated, or we'll probably get a court-martial. You'll never see this stuff on CCN, and don't ask Del when or when or where it happened."

The moonlight cut a triangle across Del's face and shoulder. There was a faraway look in her eyes as if she was remembering being 'there'... "Delta Four were manning a routine checkpoint: vehicles, pack animals, kids, and livestock. The locals do a lot mining in the hills for precious semi and semi- precious metals, mainly copper and tin but sometimes its small amounts of circuitry grade gold. You get whole families digging out terraces in hillsides. They're always falling out over who owns what. We have to search them because when they fall out they start buying in black market weapons and explosives."

"They live in these small villages strung out along the road. The kids bring down low-grade ore in boxes and baskets to sell onto metal dealers. You see lines of kids sitting on side of the road .They get 'bout the equivalent of a few dollars for a basket. On market days the villagers bring their produce in. It really ** them off being searched because it makes them late for the market and then they accuse us stealing their cooper or carrots and they put a claim in for five hundred dollars plus harassment."

"I'm the one who has to deal with that crap when the file comes in," Cameron grumbled into John's ear.

"Anyway", Del continued, "politically speaking, the region is supposed to be safe and it's being redeveloped. Irrigation, roads, schools, and medical facilities. But there's a lot of corruption, with very little being done to fix it.

The Area Administrator was persuaded by the Region Director that he should have the old white Hummer and use it for him and his wife to drive around in without an escort to show how safe the region was becoming. His wife gets this A1 job; all she has to do is smile and wave as they throw up dust and stones driving past the locals. The wife had the local dentist to do some 'much needed' dental work; she had big tooth right here," Delaney tapped her front teeth, "glinted in the sunlight when she smiled. "

So the patrol working the checkpoint get a call, it's the Administrator's wife. When the patrol pulls up they can see the wife sitting in the car. Door's shut, air con running. 'Slight' problem; she hasn't got a head anymore. The patrol goes up to the village and they find The Administrator talking with the tribesmen. He's holding a cup of rache, that's basically neat alcohol you can clean engines with, and he tells the patrol he's really proud of the working relationship he has with the village.

The patrol breaks it to the poor fucker that his wife's been decapitated. Of course the villagers start yelling, protesting, denying they had anything to do with it. They are pledging allegiance and of course they would never dream of doing such a thing. They are just poor dirt miners eking a living in a desert. Then they start trying to blame tribe who own the mining strip next to them, and that's when the patrol knows they're the ones who did it.

So two of the patrol stay outside guarding the men, the other two go in to search the building where the women are. The women and their kids are sitting at a bench sifting through ore. They all swear on their children's lives what happened to The Administrator's wife was nothing to do with them. Our two guys ask the women to get up so they can search the table. One woman at the end bench tells them she can't get up. There's a bowl in front of her which she doesn't want to let go of and there's dog growling under her chair.

When they check the bowl they find teeth. The women had been pulling out the wife's gold fillings. They get the woman with the dish on her feet and that's when they realized the dog on the floor is chewing on The Administrators wife's head.  
They had to shoot the dog to get to let go, then they ran the head under a tap to try to clean it up. They decided to shove a load of rag in its mouth make the face look normal and they carried it out in a basket for poor guy to identify.

"What happened?" asked Ben.

"He threw up and fainted."

There was silence. After a while Ben said "Del, that was actually pretty good for a 'gruesome'."

"It was nasty, "Chelsea agreed appreciatively and she rolled over and zipped her roll over her head. "Mmm, damp sleeping bags and Rob's out of date MRE's for breakfast, take's me back." She mumbled.

"Night Delaney, we're going to sleep now." The voices in the darkness gathered around Delaney drawing her into the circle of sleepers. Delaney wriggled into her bag and snuggled up next to Hitch. "Are we still on a date?" She whispered. "Yeah, for two weeks, shut down," he snorted back. Delaney thought about it for a moment and hesitantly put her arm over him. Hitch shuffled back against her.

John put his head down on Cameron's chest and shut his eyes. He felt her fingers stroking though his hair like she was 'preening' out bits of grit with her fingernails. John circled his hand over Cameron's stomach. He felt the thrill of being in the dark barn among his friends with her like this and teasingly he wanted to see how far he could push things before she stopped him, so he moved his hand lower down until the tips of his fingers worked their way under the top of her jeans. Her hand closed over the back of his and she lifted it off ,as she shifted position he felt two knuckles of her other hand twist and grind into a pressure point in his ribs , not enough to hurt , but enough to take the wind of him. "Uh-uh not here," she said. She sniffed his armpit, moved her head away and took in a gulp of air, "I'll wake you up early morning, you're gonna need a wash in the creek. I'll have to go with you for, um…'security purposes' ." She kissed him on the top of his head, "go to sleep Reese, huh."

On that promise John went out like a light


End file.
